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Monday | January 4, 2021

UNDER THE CAPITOL DOME

MONDAY PROFILE Analysis:
‘I call her our doctor’ No clear path
Caledonia college student with dreams of attending medical
school works winters at deer processing company
to erasing
Mississippi
income tax
Advocates say
eliminating the income
tax would create more
economic activity and
spur revenue growth
BY EMILY WAGSTER PET TUS
The Associated Press

JACKSON —
Mississippi Gov.
Tate Reeves says he
will ask legislators
during the 2021 ses-
sion to phase out
the state personal
income tax. The Re-
Reeves
publican should not
count on it happening quickly —
and even with his party controlling
the House and Senate, it might not
happen at all.
Reeves’ predecessor as gover-
nor, Republican Phil Bryant, signed
a 2016 law that phases out the 3 per-
cent income tax bracket, starting
in calendar year 2018 and ending
in 2022. Reeves was lieutenant gov-
ernor then, and he helped push the
plan to reality.
Reeves now says Mississippi
could be more competitive if it also
Slim Smith/Dispatch Staff erases the 4 percent and 5 percent
Melanie Moore, a 21-year-old senior at Mississippi State, spends her winter break working at Fork ‘N Road Deer brackets.
Processing in Caledonia, where she helps turn deer into as many as 19 different products.
“Let’s eliminate the income tax,
which is one huge speed bump to
BY SLIM SMITH of my courses are supposed to be Disney World shut down because of
ssmith@cdispatch.com long-term economic growth and re-
in person, but this semester I’ll the pandemic.
covery,” Reeves said in November.

T
hree years ago, Melanie
Moore decided to change
her major from nursing to
biological sciences with the goal of
attending medical school.
With the decision, she realized
she was taking on a major chal-
lenge. Just how big it would be, she
had no way of knowing.
COVID-19 not only ended an
internship just three weeks into
the job, but forced her to take most
of her classes in her crucial senior
year at Mississippi State online.
“It’s definitely been a challenge,”
said Moore, 21, of Caledonia. “Most
only go to classes two days a week.
I learn better in person. What
I’ve learned is you have to be very
self-disciplined to keep up with
everything.”
Originally, Moore was set to
graduate last spring. Instead, she
accepted an internship at Disney
World that was supposed to run
from March until August.
“I thought it would be a good ex-
perience for me,” Moore said. “You
have to have a lot of self-discipline,
and I thought it would really help
teach me to be more independent.”
But just three weeks into the job,
“I was really disappointed, espe-
cially since I put off graduating by a
semester,” Moore said.
One thing Moore probably
doesn’t have to learn is the impor-
tance of hard work. With two part-
time jobs, along with her studies,
she has no aversion to work.
In addition to her summer job as
a lifeguard at Columbus Air Force
Base, Moore has a part-time job
at Bride and Groom. She has also
been working at a deer processing
company in Caledonia, Fork ‘N
Road, during the winter break.
See MOORE, 6A
Republican House Speaker Phil-
ip Gunn said he’s open to this dis-
cussion.
“We’re trying to find ways to
have a more solid and more fair tax
structure,” Gunn said told report-
ers Dec. 7.
But, Republican Lt. Gov. Delbert
Hosemann said during a news con-
ference last week he won’t rush into
anything.
Hosemann said because of un-
certainty caused by the coronavi-
rus pandemic, legislators should
see how the state economy fares
in early 2021. He also said govern-
ment needs to fund services that
make the state stronger, and he
See ANALYSIS, 6A

Miss. post office named for 3 officers killed on duty

‘Brookhaven is my home, and the loss of these officers continues
to break the hearts of so many in our community’
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
BROOKHAVEN — A post
office in Brookhaven, Missis-
sippi, will be named for three
local law enforcement officers
who were killed in the line of
duty.
President Donald Trump
signed a law Dec. 21 to name
the “Deputy Donald William
Durr, Corporal Zach Moak and
Patrolman James White Me-
morial Post Office Building.”
Durr was a Lincoln County
deputy sheriff who was shot
to death in May 2017 while
responding to a disturbance
at a home. Seven other people
were shot to death that night.
In early 2020, a jury convicted
Willie Cory Godbolt in all of
Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith
the killings, and he was sen-
tenced to death.
Moak and White worked
for the Brookhaven Police De-
partment. They were shot to
death in September 2018 while
responding to reports of shots
being fired in a neighborhood.
Marquis Flowers has pleaded
not guilty to capital murder
charges, and he remains in
custody while awaiting trial.
“Brookhaven is my home,
and the loss of these officers
continues to break the hearts
of so many in our community,”
U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith
said in a news release.
Hyde-Smith, Sen. Roger
Wicker and U.S. Rep. Michael
Guest worked on the legisla-
tion to name the post office for
the officers.
“Mississippi respects our
law enforcement officers,
and we are grateful for the
risk they take on in the line
of duty,” Guest said. “For this
reason, it’s important to com-
memorate those we’ve lost in
remembrance of their sacri-
fice.”
Wicker said naming the
post office for Durr, Moak and
White is a fitting tribute.
“Every single day, our law
enforcement officers risk their
lives to protect and serve their
communities,” Wicker said. “I
hope this renaming will serve
as a powerful reminder of all
those men and women who
wear the badge.”

INSIDE FIVE QUESTIONS CALENDAR LOCAL FOLKS PUBLIC

Classifieds 6B 1 What comedian wrote the MEETINGS
Comics 4B books “Why Not Me?” and “Is Thursday Jan. 5: Starkville
Crossword 6B Everyone Hanging Out Without ■ Exhibit recep- Board of Aldermen
Dear Abby 4B Me”? tion: The Colum- meeting, 5:30
Obituaries 5A 2 Scientists identified a new bus Arts Council p.m., City Hall
Opinions 4A species of carnivorous plant in hosts a free recep-
2014 after a picture was posted Jan. 12:
tion, 5:30-7 p.m., Starkville-Oktibbe-
on what social media service?
3 Who won the 2015 NASCAR opening “Southern ha Consolidated
Cup Series championship after Expressions,” a
WEATHER breaking his leg earlier in the show by Leslie
School District
Board of Trustees
season?
60 Low 38
Peebles in the meeting, 6 p.m.,
4 In which Black Hills state was
High the HBO Western TV series
main gallery. Work 401 Greensboro
Sunny by Kelsey Cockrell St.
“Deadwood” set?
Full forecast on 5 What is the last name of “Roll- will be displayed in Jan. 14:
page 3A. ing in the Deep” singer Adele — Artist Alley. Stop Starkville-Oktibbe-
Ames, Adkins or Armstrong? by the Rosenzweig ha Consolidated
Arts Center, 501 School District
Answers, 6B
Main St., Colum- Board of Trustees
bus. 662-328-2787 meeting, 6 p.m.,
or columbus-arts. Tripp Fulgham of Starkville is a huge 401 Greensboro
org. sports fan. St.

DISPATCH CUSTOMER SERVICE 328-2424 | NEWSROOM 328-2471

2A MONDAY, JANUARY 4, 2021 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com

Trump, on tape, presses Ga.

official to ‘find’ him votes
‘President Trump, we’ve had several lawsuits, and
we’ve had to respond in court to the lawsuits and
the contentions. We don’t agree that you have won.’
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger
BY JEFF AMY, DARLENE
SUPERVILLE AND K ATE BRUMBACK
The Associated Press
WA S H I N G T O N
— President Donald
Trump pressured
Georgia’s Republican
secretary of state
to “find” enough
votes to overturn Joe
Biden’s win in the
state’s presidential Trump
election, repeatedly citing disprov-
en claims of fraud and raising the
prospect of a “criminal offense”
if officials did not change the vote
count, according to a recording of
the conversation.
The phone call with Secretary of
State Brad Raffensperger on Satur-
day was the latest step in an unprec-
edented effort by a sitting president
to press a state official to reverse
the outcome of a free and fair elec-
tion that he lost. The president, who
has refused to accept his loss to
Democratic president-elect Biden,
repeatedly argued that Raffen-
sperger could change the certified
results.
“All I want to do is this. I just
want to find 11,780 votes, which is
one more than we have,” Trump
said. “Because we won the state.”
Georgia counted its votes three
times before certifying Biden’s win
by a 11,779 margin, Raffensperger
noted. “President Trump, we’ve had
several lawsuits, and we’ve had to
respond in court to the lawsuits and
the contentions,” he said on the call.
“We don’t agree that you have won.”
Audio snippets of the conversa-
tion were first posted online by The
Washington Post. The Associated
Press obtained the full audio of
Trump’s conversation with Georgia
officials from a person on the call.
The AP has a policy of not ampli-
fying disinformation and unproven
allegations. The AP plans to post
the full audio as it annotates a tran-
script with fact check material.
Trump’s renewed intervention
and the persistent and unfounded
claims of fraud come nearly two
weeks before he leaves office and
two days before twin runoff elec-
tions in Georgia that will determine
political control of the U.S. Senate.
The president used the hour-
long conversation to tick through a
list of claims about the election in
Georgia, including that hundreds of
thousands of ballots mysteriously
appeared in Fulton County, which
includes Atlanta. Officials have said
there is no evidence of that happen-
ing.
The Georgia officials on the call
are heard repeatedly pushing back
against the president’s assertions,
telling him that he’s relying on de-
bunked theories and, in one case,
selectively edited video.
At another point in the conversa-
tion, Trump appeared to threaten
Raffensperger and Ryan Germa-
ny, the secretary of state’s legal
counsel, by suggesting both could
be criminally liable if they failed
to find that thousands of ballots in
Fulton County had been illegally
destroyed. There is no evidence to
support Trump’s claim.
“That’s a criminal offense,”
Trump says. “And you can’t let that
happen.”

Extraordinary warning to Trump by 10 former Pentagon chiefs

Opinion article implicitly questioned
president’s willingness to follow his
Constitutional duty to peacefully
relinquish power on Jan. 20
BY ROBERT BURNS
AP National Security Writer
WASHINGTON — duty to peacefully relin-
In an extraordinary re-
buke of President Donald
Trump, all 10 living for-
mer secretaries of defense
are cautioning against any
move to involve the mil-
itary in pursuing claims
of election fraud, argu-
ing that it would take the
country into “dangerous,
unlawful and unconstitu-
tional territory.”
The 10 men, both Dem-
ocrats and Republicans,
signed on to an opinion
article published Sunday
in The Washington Post
that implicitly questioned
Trump’s willingness to
follow his Constitutional
quish power on Jan. 20.
Following the Nov. 3 elec-
tion and subsequent re-
counts in some states, as
well as unsuccessful court
challenges, the outcome
is clear, they wrote, while
not specifying Trump in
the article.
“The time for ques-
tioning the results has
passed; the time for the
formal counting of the
electoral college votes, as
prescribed in the Consti-
tution and statute, has ar-
rived,” they wrote.
The former Pentagon
chiefs warned against use
their loyalty is to the Con-
stitution, not to an indi-
of the military in any effort
to change the outcome.
vidual leader or a political
party.
“Efforts to involve the The 10 former Penta-
gon leaders also warned
U.S. armed forces in re-
solving election disputes in their Post article of the
would take us into danger- dangers of impeding a full
ous, unlawful and uncon- and smooth transition at
Defense Department pri-
stitutional territory,” they
wrote. “Civilian and mili- or to Inauguration Day
as part of a transfer to
tary officials who direct or
power to President-elect
carry out such measures
Joe Biden. Biden has
would be accountable, in-
complained of efforts by
cluding potentially facing
Trump-appointed Penta-
criminal penalties, for
gon officials to obstruct
the grave consequences
the transition.
of their actions on our re-
public.”
A number of senior mil-
itary officers, including
Gen. Mark Milley, chair-
man of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff, have said publicly
in recent weeks that the
military has no role in
determining the outcome
of U.S. elections and that

Biden inauguration to feature virtual, nationwide parade

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
WA S H -
INGTON
— Presi-
dent- elect
Joe Biden’s
inaugura-
tion will
include a escort with representa-
“ v i r t u a l Biden
parade across America”
consistent with crowd
limits during the corona-
virus era, organizers an-
nounced Sunday.
Following the swear-
ing-in ceremony on In-
auguration Day on Jan.
20 on the west front of
the U.S. Capitol, Biden
and his wife, first lady
Jill Biden, will join Vice
President-elect Kamala
Harris and her husband in
participating in a socially
distanced Pass in Review
on the Capitol’s opposite
front side. Those are mil-
itary traditions where
Biden will review the read-
iness of military troops.
Biden will also receive
a traditional presidential
tives from every branch
of the military from 15th
Street in Washington to
the White House. That,
the Presidential Inau-
gural Committee says,
will be socially distanced
too, while “providing the
American people and
world with historic imag-
es of the President-elect
proceeding to the White
House without attracting
large crowds.”
Workers in recent days
began dismantling an in-
augural parade reviewing
stand in front of the White
House as Biden’s transi-
tion team continues to pre-
pare for festivities that will
be mostly virtual. Accord-
ingly, organizers also said
they will hold a virtual
parade nationwide to “cel-
ebrate America’s heroes,
highlight Americans from
all walks of life in different
states and regions, and re-
flect on the diversity, heri-
tage, and resilience of the
country as we begin a new
American era.”
The parade event will
be televised and feature
“diverse, dynamic” per-
formances in communi-
ties across the country,
the inaugural committee
promised.

Pelosi narrowly reelected speaker, faces difficult two years

BY ALAN FRAM
The Associated Press
WA S H -
INGTON
— Nancy
Pelosi was
narrowly
reelected
Sunday as
speaker, giv-
ing her the Pelosi
reins of Democrats’ slen-
der House majority as she
and President-elect Joe
Biden set a challenging
course of producing leg-
islation to tackle the pan-
demic, revive the econ-
omy and address other
party priorities.
“We accept a respon-
sibility as daunting and
demanding as any that
previous generations of
leadership have faced,”
the California Democrat
told the chamber as she
accepted a fresh two-year
term in her post, perhaps
her last. Citing the 350,000
Americans who’ve died
from COVID-19 and the
millions who’ve lost jobs
and livelihoods, she won a
standing ovation when she
said, “Our most urgent
priority will continue to be
defeating the coronavirus.
And defeat it, we will.”
Yet even before House
Minority Leader Kevin
McCarthy, R-Calif., cer-
emonially handed her
the speaker’s gavel — a
normally genial moment
— he provided a stark
reminder of the partisan
divide coloring Congress.
McCarthy accused Pe-
losi of over the past two
years leading “the least
productive Congress in
nearly 50 years” and said
there was a clear message
in last November’s elec-
tions, when Republicans
gained seats by defeat-
ing a dozen Democratic
incumbents. “It was a
wake-up call,” he said.
“The question I ask of this
majority: were you listen-
ing?”
 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com MONDAY, JANUARY 4, 2021 3A

Minority-owned companies waited months for loans, data shows

‘Many of our businesses were being turned down in the first and second
round of funding. That caused application fatigue and frustration.’
BY JOYCE M. ROSENBERG
AND JUSTIN MYERS
The Associated Press
NEW YORK — Thousands of
minority-owned small business-
es were at the end of the line in
the government’s coronavirus
relief program as many strug-
gled to find banks that would
accept their applications or were
disadvantaged by the terms of
the program.
Data from the Paycheck Pro-
tection Program released Dec. 1
and analyzed by The Associated
Press show that many minority
owners desperate for a relief
loan didn’t receive one until
the PPP’s last few weeks while
many more white business own-
Ron Busby, president of the U.S. Black Chambers
ers were able to get loans earlier
in the program.
The program, which began
April 3 and ended Aug. 8 and
handed out 5.2 million loans
worth $525 billion, helped many
businesses stay on their feet
during a period when govern-
ment measures to control the
coronavirus forced many to
shut down or operate at a dimin-
ished capacity. But it struggled
to meet its promise of aiding
communities that historically
haven’t gotten the help they
needed.
Congress has approved a
third, $284 billion round of PPP
loans. While companies that did
not get loans previously have
another chance at help, accord-
ing to a draft of the legislation,
businesses hard-hit by the virus
outbreak will be eligible for a
second loan.
The first round of the pro-
gram saw overwhelming de-
mand and the Small Business
Administration approved $349
billion in loans in just two weeks.
But many minority-owned firms
applied to multiple banks early
in the program and were reject-
ed, while others couldn’t get
banks to respond to their appli-
cations and inquiries.
“Many of our businesses
were being turned down in the
first and second round of fund-
ing. That caused application
fatigue and frustration,” said
Ron Busby, president of the U.S.
Black Chambers, a nationwide
chamber of commerce.
Loan data analyzed accord-
ing to ZIP codes found that in
that first round of funding, six
loans were approved for every
1,000 people living in the 20
percent of ZIP codes with the
greatest proportions of white
residents, nearly twice the rate
of loans approved for people
living in the 20 percent of ZIP
codes with the smallest propor-
tions of whites.
That pattern reversed it-
self over the final four weeks
of round two, partly because
banks responded to criticism
by making it easier to apply for
a loan. Over the entire course
of the program, the number
of loans approved grew and
evened out at 14 loans per 1,000
residents in the most ZIP codes
with the most and fewest num-
ber of white-owned businesses.
Still, minority owners were
kept waiting while their compa-
nies were in jeopardy.
“Many are hanging on by the
skin of their teeth. Most are in
the professional services, small
retail shops, restaurants, barber
shops,” said Ramiro Cavazos,
president of the United States
Hispanic Chamber of Com-
merce.
The recent data from the
SBA provided a more in-depth
look at businesses that received
loans than data released on July
6. The earlier data provided only
limited details on loans under
$150,000; the government ini-
tially refused to release more in-
formation on those borrowers,
citing privacy concerns. The AP
and other news organizations
successfully sued under the
Freedom of Information Act to
make data on all PPP loans pub-
lic, leading to the latest release.

Here we go again: What to expect as Georgia counts votes

Runoff election between Republicans David Perdue and
Kelly Loeffler and Democrats Jon Ossoff and Raphael
Warnock will determine control of the Senate
BY K ATE BRUMBACK
The Associated Press
ATLANTA — This
week will find us back in
a familiar place — wait-
ing for Georgia to count
votes.
With control of the
U.S. Senate at stake, all
eyes are on a runoff elec-
tion that has Republicans
David Perdue and Kelly
Loeffler facing Demo-
crats Jon Ossoff and Ra-
phael Warnock. Millions
of dollars have poured
in, Georgians have been
bombarded by adver-
tisements and messages
urging them to vote, and
both sides have sent their
heavy hitters to help turn
out voters.
Some things to keep
in mind as the polls close
Tuesday night:
How did we get here?
Perdue got about
88,000 more votes than
Ossoff in the general elec-
tion, but a Libertarian
candidate’s 115,000 votes
kept him from topping 50
percent, which is required
to win. Gov. Brian Kemp
appointed Loeffler to the
Senate in December 2019
after Sen. Johnny Isakson
stepped down. She and
Warnock were competing
in a 20-candidate special
election to serve the two
years remaining in Isak-
son’s term. Warnock got
1.6 million votes, while
Loeffler got nearly 1.3
million and Republican
U.S. Rep. Doug Collins
placed third with nearly a
million votes.
When does the ballot
counting start?
The polls are set to
close at 7 p.m. EST on
Election Day, and that’s
when ballot counting can
begin. Absentee ballots
must be received by the
close of polls to be count-
ed. Military and overseas
ballots postmarked by
Tuesday and received by
Friday will be counted,
and absentee voters also
have until Friday to fix
any problems so their
votes can be counted.
No ballots, including
absentee ballots received
in advance of Election
Day, can be counted un-
til the polls close. But a
state election board rule
requires county election
officials to begin process-
ing absentee ballots —
verifying signatures on
the outer envelope, open-
ing the envelopes and
scanning the ballots —
before Election Day. That
should speed things up on
election night. Still, some
absentee ballots received
by mail or in drop boxes
up until 7 p.m. on Election
Day will still need to be
processed.
Will we know the winner
on election night?
Just like in November,
it’s very possible Ameri-
cans will go to bed with-
out knowing who won.
All indicators point to the
likelihood of very tight
margins in both races.
Media organizations,
including The Associat-
ed Press, often declare
winners on election night
based on the results that
are in, voter surveys and
other political data.
But in a close race,
more of the vote may need
to be counted before the
AP can call a winner.
The lead may very
well shift as votes are
counted
In a close contest, look
for the Republican candi-
date to jump out to an ear-
ly lead. That due to two
factors: First, Republican
areas of the state usually
report their results first.
Second, Republican vot-
ers have been more likely
to vote in person, either
on Election Day or during
the early voting period.
Many counties release
those in-person results
first.
Meanwhile, heavily
Democratic counties, in-
cluding Fulton, DeKalb
and Chatham counties,
historically take longer
to count votes. Demo-
cratic candidates could
also make late surges be-
cause of late-counted mail
ballots, which heavily
favored Ossoff and War-
nock, as well as Joe Biden,
in November.
In November, Per-
due held a lead of about
380,000 votes over Ossoff
at 10 p.m. EST on elec-
tion night. But Perdue’s
lead eventually fell below
90,000.
In a very tight race, it
could take several days
to determine a winner. In
November, more than 5
percent of Georgia’s votes
were counted after noon
on the day after Election
Day. At that time, Don-
ald Trump led Biden by
100,000 votes in a race
that Biden eventually won
after all the mail ballots
were counted.

New Albany man credited with saving woman from burning home
‘I’m pretty sure any normal person
would do the same thing I did’
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
NEW ALBANY — A
Mississippi woman is
crediting a 19-year-old
man for helping save her
life when her house was
on fire.
Kalob Adair was tak-
19-year-old Kalob Adair
ing a drive after midnight
Dec. 21 when he saw
smoke and fire coming
from the house in his
hometown of New Albany,
the Northeast Mississippi
Daily Journal reported.
Adair called 911 to re-
port the fire. He saw a car
parked at the house and
realized someone might
be asleep inside the build-
ing. He went to the door of
the house and started yell-
ing and making noise to
see if anyone would wake
up.
“I’m pretty sure any
normal person would do
the same thing I did,”
Adair said.
Adair said the police
and firefighters deserve
all the recognition. But
the woman who was inside
the burning home called
Adair a “hero.”
“You literally saved my
life,” Melanie Holland told
Adair. “God put you into a
position to save my life, so
I am very grateful.”
Adair said he just hap-
pened there at the right
time. He had been up late
working on his computer
at home. He decided to
take a break and go for a
drive.
“I didn’t do anything
spectacular,” Adair said.
“It’s all God, honestly.”
Holland said she would
be dead if Adair had not
reported the fire. She said
her smoke alarms were
not going off because the
fire was in the attic and
the smoke was rising.
“I would have died in
that house,” she said. “I
am eternally grateful.”
New Albany Fire Chief
Mark Whiteside also
praised Adair. Quickly
reporting the fire prevent-
ed further damage to the
house and probably saved
Holland, Whiteside said.
Firefighters arrived
within three minutes. Po-
lice arrived before that,
beat on the door and got
Holland out of the house,
Whiteside said. He said
it appears the fire was
caused by an electrical is-
sue in the attic.

AROUND THE STATE

Father’s ashes stolen
along with Mississippi
woman’s purse
GULFPORT — A Mis-
sissippi woman is looking
for an urn carrying her fa-
ther’s ashes that was sto-
len along with her purse
while she was celebrating
her wedding.
The Sun Herald re-
ported that Jen Mullaney
Jones had the ashes in
a black and gold urn in-
side her purse when she
got married on Friday —
New Year’s Day — at the
scenic, beachfront Jones
Park in Gulfport. After
the wedding, she went
with her groom — Daniel
Jones — to the Veterans of
Foreign Wars building in
Gulfport to raise a glass
in honor of her wedding.
She’s worked at the vet-
erans hall for the last de-
newspaper. The veterans
helped search the area
with flashlights Friday
night. Her father, Michael
Scott Rordam, was a vet-
eran who died in Septem-
ber.
Police came to the
scene, and Jones is hoping
someone with knowledge
of the purse or urn will
come forward.
Likely wasting disease
found in 2 more
Mississippi counties
JACKSON — Initial
tests show that a lethal
and highly infectious deer
ailment called chronic
wasting disease may have
spread to two more north
Mississippi counties, the
state Department of Wild-
life, Fisheries and Parks
said Thursday.
Samples that hunters
submitted from bucks in
parent positive detections
of chronic wasting dis-
ease for those two coun-
ties, the department said.
Alabama’s Division of
Wildlife and Freshwater
Fisheries quickly took
note.
“These are the first
suspected CWD-positive
cases in white-tailed deer
within 25 miles of the Al-
abama state line,” the di-
vision noted in a news re-
lease. It said Alabama has
tested more than 11,000
deer since 2002, and none
was infected.
Testing in Alabama
has been more intense
since deer in Mississippi
and Tennessee tested pos-
itive for chronic wasting SOLUNAR TABLE
The solunar period indicates
disease in 2018, the state- peak-feeding times for fish and game.
Mon. Day
ment said. Major
Minor
5:33a
11:19p
6:22a
12:24a
The disease is spread Major 5:58p 6:47p
1:09p
by malformed proteins Minor 12:35p
Courtesy of Mississippi Department
of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks
called prions, like those

cade.
Someone took her
purse and the ashes that
were in it from her vehicle
Friday afternoon while it
was parked outside the
VFW.
“I’m absolutely gutted
right now,” she told the
Tippah and Alcorn coun-
ties are considered “sus-
pect positive” through ini-
tial testing. The samples
will be sent to the National
Veterinary Services Labo-
ratory in Ames, Iowa, for
confirmation.
These are the first ap-
that cause mad cow dis-
ease and the related
human infection called
Creutzfelt-Jacob disease.
Since February 2018,
78 white-tailed deer have
been detected with chron-
ic wasting disease in eight
Mississippi counties.
The Dispatch
The Commercial Dispatch (USPS 142-320)
Published daily except Saturday. Answers to common questions:
Entered at the post office at Columbus, Mississippi.
Periodicals postage paid at Columbus, MS Phone: 662-328-2424
POSTMASTER, Send address changes to:
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516 Main St., Columbus, MS 39703
Report a news tip: news@cdispatch.com

If you don’t read The Dispatch, how are you gonna know?
Opinion
4A MONDAY, JANUARY 4, 2021
PETER BIRNEY IMES Editor/Publisher
BIRNEY IMES III Editor/Publisher 1998-2018
BIRNEY IMES JR. Editor/Publisher 1947-2003

Dispatch
The
BIRNEY IMES SR. Editor/Publisher 1922-1947

ZACK PLAIR, Managing Editor

BETH PROFFITT Advertising Director
MICHAEL FLOYD Circulation/Production Manager
MARY ANN HARDY Controller

POSSUMHAW
A world of reading
“You’re never time, I learned of Each year by mid-Novem- I did not go day.com has a
alone when you’re another novel tradi- ber Icelandic publishers ready to the library world of books,
reading books.” tion involving both their book catalogs to be sent though they activities, vir-
— Susan Wiggs, books and Christ- to every household. Iceland have made tual readings,
American novelist mas. The tradition publishes more books per every effort and more bene-
is called “Jolabokaf- capita than any country in the to make fitting children

B
efore
Christmas
Sam and I
were gifted a book
“The Christmas
Candle,” along
with a suggestion Shannon Bardwell
to read the book
together during
the holidays. While both of us
are readers the idea of reading curls into a comfy chair with
a book together was a novel
idea. As the whole year had
been filled with novel ideas
and adaptive ways of living,
we decided to give it a try. We
alternately read aloud and
stopped at the end of each
chapter no matter how tempt-
ing it was to continue. The
book turned out to be more
than a book but an experience
likely to become a Christmas
tradition. About the same
lod.” The Icelandic
word is translated
as Christmas book
flood. Here’s a few
book facts gleaned
from the internet.
The tradition in
Iceland is to give
a book as a gift on
Christmas Eve. The recipient
a warm cup of hot chocolate,
coffee, or Christmas ale and
reads the book late into the
night if not all night. The idea
started during World War II
when imports of gift items
were severely limited. Paper
was not rationed and books
were printed. Everyone loved
to get a new book for Christ-
mas. By 1944 the practice of
Jolabokaflod was established
in Icelandic tradition.
world. resources safe all over the
In 2013 Iceland’s Bifrost and available. world.
University conducted a survey Even now Locally this
of book readers. Results the Colum- newspaper
showed 50% of Icelanders bus-Lowndes promotes the
read eight or more books a Public Library Imagination
year. 93% of Icelanders read at system is host- Library provid-
least one book a year. I caught ing a Winter ing children up
myself feeling slightly compet- Challenge to age five with
itive. via its Bean- a new book
Since last March I have stack reading every month
re-read books from my own platform. The delivered by
library until the supply was Challenge in- mail. Informa-
exhausted. I text my neigh- volves reading tion is available
bor who has a floor to ceiling 10 books over a three-month by calling the Commercial
collection of books. I asked period starting January 1 Dispatch office at 662-328-
for something light and through March 1, 2021. Find 2424 or online at lowndesil.
wonderful. Something that information at lowndes.bean- org. To receive a book is an
would keep me reading and stack.org or 662-329-5300. extraordinary gift at any time
yet allow me to sleep at night. Give the Icelanders a run for all over the world.
(the world is too much with their money. Columns by Shannon Bard-
me at times). She provided five Following close behind is well of Columbus appear in The
books to fit the bill. World Book Day on March 4, Dispatch weekly. Email reaches
During this pandemic year 2021. The website worldbook- her at msdeltachild@msn.com.

OTHER EDITORS
Trump gives Schumer an assist
President Trump finally signed the Covid-19 relief bill and 2021
budget on (last) Sunday night, but not before giving a big assist
to Democratic hopes of gaining control of the Senate in the two
runoff elections on Jan. 5. Current GOP Majority Leader Mitch
McConnell is left this week trying to undo the significant political
damage.
Mr. Trump had been insisting that Congress write checks of
$2,000 each to most Americans, rather than the $600 in the bill.
His own Treasury Secretary, Steven Mnuchin, negotiated the $600
figure. But after the bill passed, Mr. Trump decided that wasn’t
enough.
Never mind that the $2,000 would go to tens of millions of
Americans who have kept their jobs and maintained their incomes
during the pandemic. It would also add some $350 billion or more
to a federal deficit that is already into the trillions of dollars. The
economy won’t benefit since the recipients aren’t going to change
their behavior knowing it’s merely a one-time check.
Senate Republicans oppose the $2,000 for these sound reasons,
but Mr. Trump has put them in a political spot. Democrats imme-
diately joined Mr. Trump’s call for the $2,000, and on Monday they
passed the larger amount through the House, 275-134.
That leaves Mr. McConnell with a tough call of barring a vote
as Democrats bang away in TV ads in Georgia against GOP in-
cumbents David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler. Or he can hold a vote,
which would split the GOP caucus and upset fiscally conservative

Our merciless culture

voters. Either way it amounts to a Donald Trump in-kind contribu-
tion to Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Joe Biden.
By all accounts Mr. Trump is angry about his election defeat,

and he is lashing out at anyone who won’t indulge his hopeless
campaign to overturn it. This includes Senate Republicans, who
need to win in Georgia to retain their majority and block Mr.
Biden’s ability to indulge the Democratic left.
Mr. Trump’s narcissism isn’t news. But if Republicans lose the
two Georgia seats and their majority, Republicans across the coun-
try should know to thank Mr. Trump for their 2021 tax increase.
Wall Street Journal (Dec. 28)
VOICE OF THE PEOPLE
Questions who actually suffers from verbal
and mental deterioration
In a recent column, Patrick Buchanan cites verbal and mental
deterioration in Biden.
But Biden’s condition hasn’t had nearly the effects of Trump’s
lying and falsehoods on our country.
Trump was largely responsible for the deaths of hundreds of
thousands of Americans who did not need to die because of lies
and falsehoods about the coronavirus and not following the advice
of our scientists. Even communist China, by following the advice
of the scientists, was almost back to normal in August. Did you
notice the crowds celebrating New Year’s Eve in Wuhan compared
to NYC?
Trump spent his first days in office pushing false claims about
the size of his inauguration crowd. He has spent his last days in
office attacking the election with falsehoods and conspiracies as
part of a failed attempt to overturn the election he lost.
Any news that doesn’t fit into his conspiracies and lying is fake
news.
Trump says voter fraud is not a conspiracy, it’s a fact, but he has
yet to prove it.
Trump’s false claims that he and Republicans are for defending
pre-existing conditions in healthcare. It’s in Obamacare that they
have being trying to for years to overturn, with out presenting
their own plan.
Trump has brought freedom of not being punished to people
who do wrong to the highest office in the land, wielding a wreck-
ing ball to American democracy.
The definition of Trump’s America by the Washington Post:
Guilty is innocent, lies are truth, traitors are patriots, and no white
evangelical will cast a stone toward Trump. And I want to add one
more. Losers are winners, by a lot.
A tweet from Trump after the election of 2016: Vladimir Putin
said today about Hillary and Dems, in my opinion, it is humiliat-
ing. One must be able to lose with dignity. So true!
The worst cyber attack on the U.S. in our history, which was
just discovered recently, was conducted by Russia according to our
intelligence agencies.
Over 24,000 more lies besides the ones above.
And we have people who want this guy for another 4 years?
Talk about mental deterioration.
The NY prosecutor investigating Trump’s tax records is calling
in reinforcements as the President’s time in office comes to a
close. Can’t blame him.
James Hodges
Steens
W
hen did we
become so
merciless?
I’m not talking about
the 18-year-old kid,
featured in a New York
Times article, who
elected to torpedo a
fellow student over a
three-year-old video
clip — though what he
did was cruel. No, I’m
talking about all of the Mona Charen
supposed adults who
created the world these kids navigate through.
The outline of the story is as follows: Mimi
Groves, a 15-year-old high school freshman in
Leesburg, Virginia, posted a Snapchat video
when she got her learner’s permit. Speaking into
the camera, she said, “I can drive, n—.”
Whoa. Who uses the N-word like that? We’ll
come to that. The video circulated among a few
people and was forgotten. Three years later, it
surfaced again, this time coming to the attention
of a classmate, Jimmy Galligan, who filed it away.
Later, after Mimi Groves had been accepted to
her dream college, the University of Tennes-
see, and welcomed onto the cheerleading team
(apparently the national champion), Galligan
released the three-second video.
It was May 2020. The furor following the
death of George Floyd was erupting nationwide.
Groves, the Times reports, urged her Instagram
followers to “protest, donate, sign a petition,
rally, do something.” Her first hint of the deluge
to come was a comment from a stranger, saying
“You have the audacity to post this, after saying
the N-word.” Galligan’s little time bomb had ex-
ploded on Snapchat, TikTok and Twitter. Within
hours, the University of Tennessee was fielding
calls demanding that they rescind their accep-
tance of Groves. The cheerleading team acted
first, dismissing her. The call from the admis-
sions office followed within a couple of days.
Nowhere in The New York Times story is
there any indication that this young woman, now
19, has ever been known as a racist. A Black
friend told the Times that Groves had apologized
for the video long before it became public. With
the exception of that three-second video, she had
no history of racist posts on social media, asso-
ciations with racist organizations or complaints
against her at school. Here’s what Mimi Groves
told the Times: “At the time, I didn’t understand
the severity of the word, or the history and con-
text behind it because I was so young,” adding
that the slur was in “all the songs we listened to,
and I’m not using that as an excuse.” She said
that “it honestly disgusts me that those words
would come out of my mouth.”
She isn’t using song lyrics as an excuse,
but really, couldn’t the adults have had a little
perspective here about a 15-year-old? Hip-hop
is all the rage for teenagers the world over. So if
a young girl tries to be cool by using the word
that pop stars use, well, it’s a mistake, but is
it a crime? It takes time to learn the complex
etiquette that governs racial matters. Comedian
Trevor Noah suggested that rap artists release
two versions of their songs. One for Black people
who are allowed to use the N-word, and another
for everyone else.
Rapper Kendrick Lamar paused a concert in
2018 when he invited a white fan onstage to sing
“m.A.A.d city.” with him. Apparently, she sang
the N-word, too. “You gotta bleep one single
word,” he corrected her. And on they went. No
harm, no foul. And that was an adult.
Jimmy Galligan seems to have no regrets. The
child of a Black mother and a white father, he
reports that he felt the sting of racism growing
up. It’s not for us to question that. But he never
says that Mimi Groves was the source of it. Does
that not matter? Is she to be branded for life for
one stupid comment? Galligan, a freshman at
Vanguard University, told the Times “with satis-
faction” that he had “taught someone a lesson.”
Well, maybe the wrong someone?
This isn’t just a story about kids behaving
badly (both of them). It’s much more a story of
adults who’ve lost their bearings. Galligan should
not be able to inflict such a disproportionate pun-
ishment on Groves for a years-old infraction. And
he wouldn’t have had the power to do so without
the dereliction of the adults up and down the line.
The parents, alumni, coaches and others at the
University of Tennessee who issued a summary
judgment on Groves — declining to speak to her
teachers, coaches or friends — are betraying
their duty to act with fairness and to demonstrate
a grown-ups’ understanding. And every adult
who participated in this social media auto-da-fe is
guilty as well.
The New York Times should not have memo-
rialized this episode of youthful folly. Anyone
who has ever been 18 can imagine that the day
will come when Galligan deeply regrets his
conduct toward Groves. We know that Groves
already regrets her three-year-old slip. But now,
their lapses are public property. They are not
human beings, but symbols. Adults have robbed
them of the chance to mature in peace — which
isn’t surprising, since the adults never matured
themselves.
Mona Charen is a Senior Fellow at the Ethics
and Public Policy Center.

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James Anderson III
COLUMBUS —
James Brady Anderson
III, 73, died Jan. 3,
2021, at Baptist Memo-
rial Hospital-Golden
Triangle.
Arrangements are
incomplete and will be
announced by Memori-
al Gunter Peel Funeral
Home and Crematory,
College Street location.
Virginia Vernon
SHUQUALAK —
Sarah Virgina Higgin-
botham Vernon, 86,
died Dec. 30, 2020, at
Noxubee County Nurs-
ing Home, in Macon.
A graveside service
was held Sunday, at
Butler Cemetery, with
Ronnie Cartwright and
Gerald Butler officiat-
ing. Burial followed.
Cockrell Funeral Home
of Macon was in charge
of arrangements.
Mrs. Vernon was
born Sept. 21, 1934,
in Noxubee County,
to the late Johnny and
Flora G. Butler Higgin-
botham. She attended
Shuqualak schools and
was formerly employed
with American Bosch
and Macon Pants Fac-
tory. She was a member
of Butler Pentecostal
Church.
In addition to her
parents, she was pre-
ceded in death by her
husband, Robert Ver-
non; son, Gary Eaves;
and brothers, Lamar
Higginbotham and Gil-
bert Higginbotham.
She is survived by
her daughter, Rita
Jones of Shuqualak;
brother, Reginald Hig-
Report: Talk
show host Larry
King in hospital
with COVID-19
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
LOS ANGELES — For-
mer CNN talk show host
Larry King has been hospi-
talized with COVID-19 for
more than a week, the news
channel reported Saturday.
Citing an unidentified
person close to the family,
CNN said the 87-year-old
King is undergoing treat-
ment at Cedars-Sinai Med-
ical Center in Los Angeles.
Hospital protocols have
kept King’s family mem-
bers from visiting him.
The Peabody
Award-winning broad-
caster was among Amer-
ica’s most prominent
interviewers of celebri-
ties, presidents and oth-
er newsmakers during a
half-century career that
included 25 years with a
nightly show on CNN.
The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com MONDAY, JANUARY 4, 2021 5A
AREA OBITUARIES
ginbotham of Shuqual- Patte Marines Coleman of West Point, Mr. Easter was Smith Sr.; sister, Tres-
ak; four grandchildren; James Edwin Coleman born Sept. 9, 1946, in sie Fay Morris; and one
COLUMBUS —
nine great-grand- Patte Marines, 89, died of Atlanta, Georgia, West Point, to the late grandchild.
children; and two Jan. 3, 2021, at North and David Howard Beulah Lee Vest and She is survived by
great-great-grandchil- Mississippi Medical Coleman II of Cedar J. B. Easter. He was her children, Dale
dren. Center. Park, Texas. formerly employed as a Keith Smith, Jr. of
Memorials may be Arrangements are Pallbearers will be truck driver and was a Hamilton and David
made to Butler Pen- incomplete and will be Jack Coleman, Bonner member of Christ Unit- Conn Smith of North-
tecostal Church, c/o ed Methodist Church.
announced by Lown- Coleman, Bill Tribble, port, Alabama; siblings,
Clytee Lowery, 6150 des Funeral Home of Mike Mathews and He is survived by M.C. Morris of Long
Butler Road, Macon, Columbus. Troy Creely. his wife, Anne Easter; Beach and Anna Maxie
MS 39341 or Butler Memorials may be children, Alan Easter Moore of Tyler, Texas;
Cemetery Fund, 991 made to West Point/ of Becker, Jason Easter, eight grandchildren;
Johnny Higginbotham Billy Davis Clay County Animal Stacy Riley both of and nine great-grand-
Road, Shuqualak, MS WEST POINT — West Point and Jeffery
Shelter, 5122 Old Tib- children.
39361. Billy Jewell Davis, 80, Fulgham of Cedar
bee Road, West Point, Pallbearers will be
died Jan. 3, 2021, at his Bluff; sister, Charlotte
MS 39773. Colton Smith, Cooper
residence.
Patrina Gladney Graveside services
Adams of West Point; Smith, Justin Black,
STARKVILLE — Maurice Williams 13 grandchildren; and Conner Black, Wyatt
will be at 2 p.m. Tues- seven great-grandchil-
Patrina Gladney, 55, CRAWFORD — Baggett, Barrett Bag-
day, at Greenwood dren.
died Dec. 26, 2020. Maurice James Wil- gett, Kulter Baggett,
Cemetery, with the Memorials may be
Graveside services liams, 42, died Jan. 3, Holden Baggett, Law-
Rev. Owen Hitchcock made to Christ United
are at 11 a.m. today, 2021, at his residence. son Pope and Kohen
officiating. Robinson Methodist Church, c/o
at Public Cemetery. Arrangements are Thompson.
Funeral Home of West Janice Fowler, 1414
Visitation was from incomplete and will be
Point is in charge of E. Brame Ave., West
2-5 p.m. Saturday, at announced by Carter’s
arrangements. Point, MS 39773.
West Memorial Funeral Funeral Services of
Mr. Davis was born
Home. West Memo- Columbus.
Dec. 30, 1940, to the
rial Funeral Home of
late Lora Mae Raines
Lorraine Smith
Starkville is in charge COLUMBUS —
of arrangements. and Jewell Hayward Golena Conley Elma Lorraine Morris
Davis. He was formerly STARKVILLE —
She is survived by Smith, 87,
employed as owner of Golena Conley, 91, died
her children, Trina died Jan.
BJ Davis Transporta- Dec. 28, 2020.
Gladney and Anna 1, 2021, at
Carr; and siblings, John tion and was a member Visitation is from 2-6
Windsor
of West End Baptist p.m. today, at West Me-
Gladney and Mark
Church. morial Funeral Home.
Place.
Gladney. Grave-
He is survived by West Memorial Funeral side Brandon Sesser
his wife, Joyce Davis; Home of Starkville is Graveside Services:
Brandon Sesser children, Timothy in charge of arrange-
services Tuesday, Jan. 5 • 2 PM
COLUMBUS — An- will be at 1 Smith Friendship Cemetery
“Timmy” Davis of Wil- ments. Burial
drew Brandon Sesser, p.m. Tues- Friendship Cemetery
son, Arkansas, Teresa She is survived by day, at Greens Creek College St. Location
40, died Dec. 21, 2020, Atkins and Melissa her children, Walter
in Starkville. Baptist Church Cem-
Vest both of West Point; J. Conley, Sid Conley etery, in Carson, with Lorraine Smith
A graveside service sister, Jill Shurden of Jr., Karl Conley, Dor- Graveside Services:
will be held at 2 p.m. the Rev. Roger Lee Tuesday, Jan. 5 • 1 PM
West Point; five grand- otha M. Conley, Gail officiating. Memorial Greens Creek Baptist
Tuesday, at Friendship C. Miller and Ramona
children; and four Gunter Peel Funeral Church Cemetery
Cemetery, with Randy Carson, MS
great-grandchildren. Conley; and siblings, Home and Crematory,
Bridges officiating. Burial
Pallbearers will be Margie Moore, Debbie Second Avenue North Greens Creek Baptist
Memorial Gunter Peel Church Cemetery
Thomas Griffin, Carl Chandler and Tommy location, is in charge of
Funeral Home and Carson, MS
Griffin, Kaleb Griffin, Chandler. arrangements. 2nd Ave. N. Location
Crematory, College
Landon Griffin, Bailey Mrs. Smith was born
Street location, has James Anderson
been entrusted with the
Davis, Mitch Shurden James Easter Jr. Sept. 2, 1933, in Pren-
Incomplete
and Murf Davis. CEDAR BLUFF— tiss, to the late Miller
arrangements. College St. Location
Memorial may be James B. “Jimmy” Eas- Conn and Elma Jane
Mr. Sesser was born
Nov. 18, 1980, in Co-
made to Shriners ter Jr., 74, died Jan. 1, Lee Morris. She was Steve Van Asselt
Hospital for Children, 2021, at his residence. Held At A Later Date
lumbus, to Royce Scott formerly employed with
2900 Rocky Point Dr., A celebration of life
College St. Location
Sesser and Dr. Marilyn Ruth’s, Eggers and in
Tampa, FL, 33607. service will be held at
Dossett Sesser Bow- the jewelry profession.
a later date. Robinson
en. He attended New In addition to her
Howard Coleman Funeral Home of West memorialgunterpeel.com
Hope schools and was parents, she was pre-
WEST POINT — Point is in charge of
a graduate of Eupora ceded in death by her
Howard “Clark” Cole-
High School and East arrangements. husband, Dale Keith
man, 72, died Jan. 1,
Mississippi Commu-
nity College. He was 2021, at NMMC-West
Point.
formerly employed in
the cybersecurity field Graveside ser-
vices will be at 2 p.m.
at various companies
and as the Computer Wednesday, at Green-
wood Cemetery. Rob-
Programming Instruc-
tor and Information inson Funeral Home of
Systems Technology West Point is in charge
Department Director at of arrangements.
EMCC. Mr. Coleman was
He is survived by his born May 13, 1948, to
wife, Amy Hill Sesser; the late Virginia Sor-
children, Rain James rels and Howard Clark
Sesser and Maisy Lilith Coleman Sr. He was a
Sesser; stepmother, graduate of Pascagoula
Michelle Manning High School, attended
Sesser; stepfather, Duke University and
Charles Michael Bow- was a graduate of the
en; and siblings, Ryan University of Missis-
Scott Sesser, Kathryn sippi Law School. He
Clare Sesser-Domé, was formerly employed
William Brent Sesser, practicing law at
Harli Malone Sesser, Coleman, Coleman and
Rider Manning Sesser, Coleman Law Firm.
Sarah Green and Scott He is survived by
McCrevy. his siblings, Lee S.
Send in your church event!
Email editorialassistant@cdispatch.com
Subject: Religious brief
6A MONDAY, JANUARY 4, 2021 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com

Explainer: How Congress will count Electoral College votes

Dozens of House Republicans and a smaller Bipartisan representatives of
both chambers read the results
of both parties, then read each
certificate out loud and record
a vote had occurred.

group of GOP senators are expected to
object to the count from some swing states
where President Trump has alleged fraud
BY MARY CLARE JALONICK
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Wednes-
day’s congressional joint ses-
sion to count electoral votes has
taken on added importance this
year as congressional Republi-
cans allied with President Don-
ald Trump are pledging to try
and undo Democrat Joe Biden’s
victory and subvert the will of
the American people.
The Republicans — a dozen
senators and many more House
members — are citing Trump’s
repeated, baseless charges of
widespread fraud. They say they
will officially object to the re-
sults, forcing votes in the Repub-
lican-run Senate and the Demo-
cratic-controlled House that will
almost certainly fail.
There was not widespread
fraud in the election, as has been
confirmed by a range of election
officials and by William Barr,
who stepped down as attorney
general last month. Neither
Trump nor any of the lawmak-
ers promising to object to the
count have presented credible
evidence that would change the
outcome.
Nearly all of the legal chal-
lenges put forth by Trump
and his allies have been dis-
missed by judges. The Supreme
Court, which includes three
Trump-nominated justices, has
also denied requests to hear a
pair of cases aimed at invalidat-
ing the outcome of the election in
key battleground states.
The congressional meeting
on Jan. 6 is the final step in re-
affirming Biden’s win, after the
Electoral College officially elect-
ed him in December. The meet-
ing is required by the Constitu-
tion and includes several distinct
steps.
A look at the joint session:
What happens when Congress
meets Wednesday?
Under federal law, Congress
must meet Jan. 6 to open sealed
certificates from each state that
contain a record of their electoral
votes. The votes are brought into
the chamber in special mahoga-
ny boxes used for the occasion.
out loud and do an official count.
The president of the Senate,
Vice President Mike Pence, pre-
sides over the session and de-
clares the winner. The session
begins at 1 p.m. EST.
What does the Constitution
require?
The Constitution requires
Congress to meet and count
the electoral votes. If there is
a tie, then the House decides
the presidency, with each con-
gressional delegation having
one vote. That hasn’t happened
since the 1800s, and Biden’s
electoral win over Trump was
decisive, 306-232.
How does the session unfold?
The two chambers meet
together midday to count the
votes. If the vice president can-
not preside, there is precedent
for the Senate pro-tempore, or
the longest-serving senator in
the majority party, to lead the
session. That’s currently Sen.
Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa.
The presiding officer opens
and presents the certificates
of the electoral votes in alpha-
betical order of the states. The
appointed “tellers” from the
House and Senate, members
and count the votes. At the end,
the presiding officer announces
who has won the majority votes
for both president and vice pres-
ident.
What if there’s an objection?
After a teller reads the certif-
icate from a state, any member
can stand up and object to that
state’s vote on any grounds. But
the presiding officer will not
hear the objection unless it is
in writing and signed by both
a member of the House and a
member of the Senate.
If there is such a request,
then the joint session suspends
and the House and Senate go
into separate sessions to con-
sider it. For the objection to be
sustained, both chambers must
agree to it by a simple majority
vote. If they do not both agree,
the original electoral votes are
counted with no changes.
The last time such an objec-
tion was considered was 2005,
when Rep. Stephanie Tubbs
Jones of Ohio and Sen. Barbara
Boxer of California, both Dem-
ocrats, objected to Ohio’s elec-
toral votes, claiming there were
voting irregularities. Both the
House and Senate debated the
objection and easily rejected it.
It was only the second time such
Who is expected to object?
Dozens of House Republi-
cans and a smaller group of GOP
senators are expected to object
to the count from some swing
states where Trump has alleged
fraud, despite the consensus of
nonpartisan election officials
and even Trump’s former attor-
ney general that there was none.
None of the members have pre-
sented detailed evidence and
none of them objected to the
swearing-in of congressional
lawmakers who won election on
the same ballots.
In the Senate, Missouri Sen.
Josh Hawley was the first to say
he would join with the House
Republicans. On Saturday, Sen.
Ted Cruz of Texas announced a
coalition of 11 additional sena-
tors who vowed to vote against
unspecified state electors on
Wednesday unless Congress
appoints an electoral commis-
sion to immediately conduct
an audit of the election results.
Hawley and Cruz are both
among potential 2024 presiden-
tial contenders.
The challenges have split the
party. Senate Republican Lead-
er Mitch McConnell has urged
his colleagues not to object, say-
ing last month on a private call
that the vote would be “terrible.”

Moore
Continued from Page 1A
“I started working there in
high school,” she said. “Last
year, my junior year of col-
lege, I was coming home and
stopped by there. I always kept
in touch with them. So when
I went by there, they told me
they needed workers.”
From November through
February, Fork ‘N Road em-
ploys a dozen or more tempo-
rary workers, most of them
high school and college stu-
dents home for winter break.
Nancy Larmour, who with
her husband has owned and
operated Fork ‘N Road for 11
years, said Moore has been a
Slim Smith/Dispatch Staff
Melanie Moore places deer product into a bag, which will then great worker.
be vacuumed-sealed, as part of her job at Fork ‘N Road Deer “I call her our doctor,”
Processing in Caledonia. Moore, 21, a Mississippi State senior, Nancy Larmour said. “It’s hard
has worked at the company during winter break since she was a work, especially with how
student at Caledonia High School. busy we’ve been. Melanie has
been great. She really knows
what she’s doing and, at this
point, she can do most about
every job we have here. All of
the kids are like that. They’ve
been great.”
Moore said she likes the
work, even though some of her
fellow workers are a bit queasy
with some aspects of the job.
“I’m the only girl that will
do the skinning,” she said,
laughing. “It doesn’t bother
me.”
Moore will begin classes at
Mississippi State on Jan. 11.
“I’ll finish in December,”
she said. “I’m also studying for
the NCATs (the test required
for those who want to attend
medical school) and start
applying to medical schools in
the summer.”
That will be a big step in
fulfilling a dream that began,
rather abstractly, in high
school.
“I always wanted to work
with children,” she said. “In
high school, I wasn’t sure
exactly what that would look
like. My mom thought I should
be a teacher, but by the time I
graduated I thought I’d like to
be a neonatal nurse.”
After her first year at East
Mississippi Community Col-
lege, she decided to change
her major.
“I started researching
everything and I realized it
would take about the same
amount of years to go into
medical training to be a doc-
tor,” she said, “so I decided to
go for it.”

Analysis
Continued from Page 1A
wants to increase teacher
pay.
“We’re not going to
go through a process of
eliminating the ability of
people to get educated,
just for a talking point,”
Hosemann said of the tax
cut proposal.
Hosemann said elim-
inating the 4 percent in-
come tax would cost about
$250 million to $300 mil-
lion and “we would have
to make up somewhere.”
He said erasing the entire
income tax would cost
about $1.9 billion to $2
billion.
“Now, even if you phase
that out over an eight-year
period, it’s still hundreds
of millions of dollars a
year,” Hosemann said.
Without the income
tax revenue, legislators
could significantly cut
state services or increase
a different type of tax.
Advocates say eliminat-
ing the income tax would
create more economic ac-
tivity, spurring revenue
growth without requiring
an increase in other tax-
es. Hosemann said the
state would need a “tre-
mendously profitable”
year to make up the dif-
ference.
“We’ve not had that
growth in Mississippi,”
he said. “We’ve been in
slow growth.”
The individual income
tax is one of the largest
sources of Mississippi tax
collections.
During the fiscal year
that ended June 30, the
state collected about $5.8
billion from all types of
state taxes, fees and other
sources, including lawsuit
settlements, according to
the state Department of
Finance and Administra-
tion. The biggest chunk
of money, about $2.2 bil-
lion, came from sales
taxes. The next-largest
source was about $1.8
billion from individual in-
come taxes.
The Mississippi De-
partment of Revenue says
the state does not charge
individual income tax for
the first $6,000 for a single
person or the first $8,000
for the head of household
— one person with at
least one dependent. The
exemption for a married
couple is $12,000.
Mississippi charges no
individual income tax on
the first $2,000 of taxable
income.​It charges 3 per-
cent on the next $3,000,
4 percent on the next
$5,000 and 5 percent on
all taxable income over
$10,000.
Texas and Florida
are on the short list of
states without a personal
income tax. Tennessee
taxes interest from bonds
and dividends from stock,
but not other personal in-
come. All three of those
states have seen signif-
icant growth in recent
years, while Mississippi
has been losing popula-
tion.
Of course, tax struc-
ture is not the only factor
influencing which states
thrive.
Among those pushing
to phase out the income
tax is Empower Missis-
sippi, which advocates
limited government.
“The more money Mis-
sissippi workers can keep
in their pockets, the more
they can invest in their
families, their communi-
ties and their business-
es,” the group’s president,
Russ Latino, said in a
Dec. 20 email. “Increased
consumption in the econ-
omy drives new jobs and
higher wages.”
Nancy Loome is ex-
ecutive director of The
Parents’ Campaign, an
advocacy group for Mis-
sissippi public schools.
She said Kansas expe-
rienced “catastrophe”
when it dramatically re-
duced its income tax rate
in 2012 and 2013.
“I say we take a pass
on following the Kansas
model,” Loome said in
a Dec. 17 email. “Let’s
stick with a teacher pay
raise, more pre-K and ful-
ly funded public schools
— things that truly will
make our state more liv-
able.”
Sports
PRO FOOTBALL
SPORTS LINE
662-241-5000
THE DISPATCH n CDISPATCH.COM n MONDAY, JANUARY 4, 2021
B
SECTION

Saints rout Panthers 33-7 to earn No. 2 seed in NFC playoffs

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS in the NFC playoffs.
The Saints (12-4) will
CHARLOT TE, N.C. host the seventh-seeded
— While the Saints Chicago Bears in the
didn’t get the first-round wild-card round next
bye in the NFC play- Sunday at 4:40 p.m. EST.
offs they coveted, they “We have had various
proved again they can guys go down in a key
win big games without positions,” Brees said.
star players. “We were dealt kind of
And that could come a crazy hand this week,
in handy in the postsea- but it says so much about
son. our team and how we
Drew Brees threw were able to respond.”
for 201 yards and three Brees sat out five
touchdowns, the Saints games this season with
had five interceptions broken ribs, wide receiv-
and New Orleans routed er Michael Thomas has
the Carolina Panthers missed nine games with
33-7 on Sunday without an ankle injury and on
their top two running Sunday the entire Saints
backs and fullback to running back room was
wrap up the No. 2 seed out due to a COVID-19
outbreak.
That meant converted
wide receiver Ty Mont-
gomery had to fill in for
Alvin Kamara, who tied
an NFL record with six
TDs in Week 16 vs. the
Vikings. He proved up
to the task, rushing for
105 yards on 18 carries
as the Saints became
the first team to sweep
the NFC South by going
6 -0 since the division
was formed in 2002.
Wide receiver Em-
manuel Sanders said
that’s a tribute to coach
Sean Payton.
“How he’s handled
Bob Donnan/USA TODAY Sports
Drew, Michael (Thom- Carolina Panthers quarterback P.J. Walker (6) is sacked by New Orleans Saints
as) and Alvin being out. defensive end Carl Granderson (96) in the fourth quarter at Bank of America
See SAINTS, 3B Stadium.

Derrick Henry NO. 13 KENTUCKY 92, NO. 12 MISSISSIPPI STATE 86 (OT)

passes 2K,
Titans beat
Texans 41-38
on late field
Bulldogs fall to No. 13 Wildcats
goal
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
in overtime thriller
HOUSTON — Der-
rick Henry ran into the
NFL record books with
the best game of his ca-
reer on Sunday.
But it was a lucky
bounce that gave the
Tennessee Titans a
win over Houston Tex-
ans and their first AFC
South title since 2008.
Henry ran for a ca-
reer-high 250 yards to
surpass 2,000 yards
rushing and rookie Sam
Sloman’s 37-yard field
goal bounced off the
upright and through for
the 41-38 victory.
“I told them I’m for-
tunate and proud to be
their coach,” Tennessee
coach Mike Vrabel said.
“They don’t quit. They
don’t give in and I know
there’s times where
you could. ... I think
unfortunately that hap-
pens sometimes in this
See TITANS, 3B

Rodgers
throws 4
TDs, Packers Rickea Jackson scored 23 points to guide the Mississippi State offense in Sunday’s 92-86 loss to Kentucky.
Mississippi State Athletics

beat Bears
35-16 for top
seed
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
CHICAGO — Aaron
Rodgers saw teammates
hugging and dancing
and coach Matt LaFleur
break out a few impres-
sive moves in the locker
room celebration.
The Green Bay Pack-
ers clinched the No. 1
seed in the NFC. Then
they cut loose.
“I didn’t see any
tears,” Rodgers said.
“I’d probably be the one
crying. I think anybody
over 30 can appreciate
... the emotions, the
perspective changes a
little bit. Each moment
is a little more special.”
Rodgers threw for
four touchdowns, break-
ing his franchise record
for scoring passes in a
season, and Green Bay
clinched the No. 1 seed
in the NFC by beating
the playoff-bound Chi-
cago Bears 35-16 on
Sunday.
The Packers (13-
3) earned a bye while
winning their sixth in
See PACKERS, 3B
BY BEN PORTNOY
bportnoy@cdisaptach.com
STARK VILLE — Sunday’s
meeting between two of the
Southeastern Conference’s
prized fighters went ten
rounds and then some.
With a dizzying array of
offensive assassination, Ken-
tucky’s reigning conference
player of the year Rhyne
Howard and Mississippi State
sophomore forward Rickea
Jackson shredded their re-
spective opponents’ defenses
to the tune of 43 combined
second half and overtime
points as Kentucky slipped
out of Humphrey Coliseum
with an 92-86 overtime win.
“They were a well-oiled
machine in that fourth quar-
ter and they knew where they
wanted to get this ball and
who they wanted to get this
ball,” Mississippi State head
coach Nikki McCray-Penson
said. “We’re not there yet.”
In a rematch of last sea-
son’s SEC Tournament semifi-
nal, MSU lacked the offensive
flow and general cohesion that
helped it throttle the Wildcats
by 18 points in Greenville,
South Carolina last spring. In-
stead, the Bulldogs mustered
another sluggish start in an
increasingly long list of dis-
mal first quarter shooting per-
formances this season. MSU
hit just one of its first six shots
and finished the first half 13
of 37 (35.1 percent) from floor.
Junior forward Jessika
Carter, who finished with her
fourth double-double of the
season after a revived sec-
ond half, again endured long
stretches of deafening silence
when matched up against
Kentucky forward Dre’una
Edwards. From her opening
shot of the contest — a missed
put back off a wayward Sid-
ney Cooks 3-pointer — Carter
settled for step back jumpers
and lacked the general touch
around the rim that helped
her average 16.7 points per
game heading into Sunday as
she finished a meager 1-of-7
from the field in the first half.
But Sunday was about How-
ard and Jackson.
Succumbing to the body
blows of early foul trouble
and the length of MSU’s wing
defenders — most notably,
junior guard Xaria Wiggins,
who returned to the lineup af-
ter dealing with a blood clot in
her right lung — Howard’s ar-
rival in the Ali-Frazier-esque
meeting took three quarters
to coagulate.
Arrive she did.
Howard flashed the domi-
nant scoring approach that will
make her a first round WNBA
draft pick when the time comes,
scoring 29 of her 33 points over
the final two quarters and over-
time, including 10 in the extra
period.
“She showed today why
she’s the best player in the
country,” Kentucky head coach
Kyra Elzy said. “And she can
take over at any time.”
While Howard shined, Jack-
son shone nearly as bright in
her first primetime test of the
year.
Coming out of the halftime
break, Jackson took over an oth-
erwise stagnant MSU offense.
She sliced and diced whichever
combination of defenders the
Wildcats threw at her. Jackson
got to her spots, hit her shots
and helped the Bulldogs fight
off run after run from Howard
and her supporting cast.
Jackson concluded Sunday’s
contest with a team-high 23
points and garnered MSU’s
clearest look at a win when
she muscled her way toward
the rim in the closing seconds
of regulation, only to see her
ill-fated attempt clank off the
rim as the buzzer sounded.
“I didn’t execute,” Jackson
said through a somber, hushed
tone.
For MSU, Sunday’s loss was
a reminder of a season past. A
year ago, then-head coach Vic
Schaefer maligned his team
week after week for immaturity
and an inability to play sound,
fundamental basketball for 60
minutes. In so many words, Mc-
Cray-Penson echoed those sen-
timents in the depths of Hum-
phrey Coliseum postgame.
“We’re good enough,” she
said. “We’ve just got to grow
up.”
In a perfect world, the Bull-
dogs were to ease their way
into conference play Sunday
against Vanderbilt, followed by
contests against a below-aver-
age slate of Florida, Ole Miss
and Alabama. A meeting with
the Wildcats would’ve endured
in late January.
But with COVID-19-related
issues at Vanderbilt forcing a
postponement, the conference
bumped MSU’s game against
the Wildcats to Sunday, set-
ting up a young Bulldogs squad
with their stiffest test of the
McCray-Penson era.
In a game in which MSU’s
brightest star was ever-so
slightly outdone by as prov-
en a commodity as there is in
women’s college basketball, the
Bulldogs had their chances at
victory. But until the maturi-
ty and completeness Schaefer
preached and McCray-Penson
continues to call for in varying
forms arrives, nights like Jack-
son’s Sunday won’t be enough
in upcoming SEC slugfests.
2B MONDAY, JANUARY 4, 2021
Browns end long playoff drought, survive late Steelers rally
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
CLEVELAND — cades of dysfunction,
Squeezing the game ball
in his left hand, Baker
Mayfield looked at the gi-
ant scoreboard showing
highlights of Cleveland’s
glory days.
In the stands, masked
fans hugged, high-fived
and took one last look at
the final score — Cleve-
land 24, Pittsburgh 22 —
just to make sure.
The Browns, winless
just three seasons ago
and so bad for so long, are
in the playoffs.
The NFL’s longest
postseason drought is
over.
“I am really just happy
for our fans,” said first-
year coach Kevin Stefans-
ki. “They deserve this.
They have been waiting
for this and we are happy
to deliver that to them.”
Mayfield threw a we wanted was a chance,
touchdown pass and had
several big runs in the
second half as the Browns
made the playoffs for first
time since 2002 on Sun-
day, surviving a late Ma-
son Rudolph-led rally to
beat the rival Steelers,
who sat quarterback Ben
Roethlisberger and sev-
Washington beats the Eagles 20-14, captures NFC East title
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
PHILADELPHIA —
Just call the Washington
Football Team division
champs.
Alex Smith threw two
touchdown passes and
Washington beat the
Philadelphia Eagles 20-14
Sunday night to capture
the lowly NFC East.
The Washington fran-
chise, which changed its
nickname in July after
years of protests about
it, became the first team
in the Super Bowl era
to reach the playoffs fol-
lowing a 2-7 start. Wash-
ington earned the NFC’s
No. 4 seed and will host
Tom Brady and the Tam-
pa Bay Buccaneers (11-5)
in a wild-card game next
Saturday night. A loss
would’ve given the New
York Giants (6-10) the di-
vision title.
It didn’t hurt the vis-
itors that Eagles coach
Doug Pederson switched
to third string quarter-
Brady throws for 4 TDs, Bucs pull away from Falcons 44-27
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
TAMPA, Fla. — Tom
Brady and the Tampa Bay
Buccaneers are heating
up at the right time. Hard-
ly surprising where Brady
is concerned.
The six-time Super
Bowl champion threw for
399 yards and four touch-
downs Sunday, helping
the playoff-bound Bucs
clinch the fifth seed in the
NFC with a 44-27 regular
season-ending win over
the Atlanta Falcons.
But the team’s fourth
straight victory, which
means the Bucs (11-5)
will face the NFC East
champion, Washington
or the New York Giants,
on the road in the club’s
first postseason game in
13 years, may have come
with a steep cost.
Star receiver Mike
Evans was carted to the
locker room with a left
knee injury late in the
first quarter and did not
return.
Evans was hurt one
play after a 20-yard recep-
tion made him the first
player in NFL history to
begin a career with seven
consecutive 1,000-yard
seasons. He went down
trying to make a catch
in the end zone and was
carted to the locker room
after first trying to walk
off with assistance from a
trainer.
“It meant the world
for him to get that record
and, then, to have an easy
touchdown,” Bucs coach
eral other starters.
After nearly two de-
bad draft picks, coaching
changes and front-office
purges, the Browns (11-
5), who went 0-16 in 2017,
are still playing in 2021.
It wasn’t easy. They
nearly blew a 15-point
lead in the fourth quar-
ter, but stopped Pitts-
burgh’s 2-point conver-
sion attempt, recovered
an onside kick with 1:22
left and then ran out the
clock.
A week of COVID-19
disruptions concluded
in celebration as the
Browns wrapped up their
big reward: a third match-
up this season against
the AFC North champion
Steelers, in Pittsburgh
next Sunday night.
“We’re not satisfied,”
Mayfield said. “We ex-
pected to be here. ... All
and now we have one.”
Nick Chubb rushed
for 108 yards and a touch-
down for the Browns,
who were up 24-9 early
in the fourth before Ru-
dolph brought back the
Steelers (12-4).
Instead of Roethlis-
berger, who is 23-2-1 in
back Nate Sudfeld early in
the fourth quarter, which
surely couldn’t have
gone over well with Gi-
ants fans. Sudfeld hadn’t
thrown a pass since 2018
and was picked on his sec-
ond attempt. He also lost
a fumble.
Led by Smith and first-
year coach Ron Rivera,
who overcame a form of
skin cancer during the
season, Washington (7-
9) is the third team to
win a division title with
a losing record during a
full 16-game season. Se-
attle (2010) and Carolina
(2014) previously did it
and each won a playoff
game.
Smith threw a 13-yard
TD pass to Logan Thom-
as in the second quarter
to give Washington a
17-14 lead it never relin-
quished after Jalen Hurts
scored on a pair of 6-yard
TD runs for Philadelphia
(4-11-1).
The 36-year-old Smith
began the season as the
Bruce Arians said. “The
turf was really slick in
the end zone. It was just
a freaky thing. Knock on
wood, we don’t think there
is any serious damage,
but we will know more in
the next 24 hours.”
Brady threw touch-
down passes of 29 and 4
yards to Chris Godwin.
The 43-year-old quarter-
back also teamed with
Antonio Brown on scor-
ing plays of 25 and 30
yards to finish with a fran-
chise-record 40 in his first
season with the Bucs.
Brady joined Aaron
Rodgers, Drew Brees,
Peyton Manning and Dan
Marino as the only play-
ers with multiple seasons
of at least 40 TD passes.
Rodgers has done it three
times, the others twice.
Now it’s on to the play-
offs, where Tampa Bay
hasn’t appeared since
2007.
“It’s about one foot-
ball game, who plays
well, who executes when
the pressure is on,” said
Brady, who’s thrown for at
least two touchdowns in
seven consecutive games.
He shrugged off a
question about whether
he imagined he might be
able to throw for 40 touch-
downs in his first season
with a new team, especial-
ly considering the absence
of a normal offseason due
to the coronavirus pan-
demic.
“Whatever happens for
me as a quarterback is re-
flective of what we do as
The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com
his career against the
Browns, Steelers coach
Mike Tomlin started Ru-
dolph and left defensive
stars T.J. Watt and Cam
Heyward along with cen-
ter Maurkice Pouncey
back in Pittsburgh.
Big Ben and the boys
will be back in a week.
“I wasn’t worried about
next week,” Tomlin said.
“I was worried about this
game and rightfully so.”
Rudolph’s 2-yard TD
pass to JuJu Smith-Schus-
ter with 1:23 left pulled
the Steelers within 24-22.
But the backup QB badly
overthrew rookie Chase
Claypool on the 2-point
attempt, and Browns
tight end Stephen Carl-
son fell on the ensuing
kick under a pile of bod-
ies.
The Browns only had
to run out the clock to
secure the win and May-
field, who earlier had a
key 28-yard run, scam-
pered for 3 yards on 3rd-
and-2 with 1:10 left.
Before the scoreboard
clock in FirstEnergy
Stadium ticked off its
final seconds, most of
the 12,000 fans — there
were some Terrible Towel
wavers — cheered wild-
No. 3 quarterback, a re-
markable comeback fol-
lowing 17 surgeries on his
leg and a life-threatening
infection put his career
in jeopardy. He led Wash-
ington’s turnaround, go-
ing 4-1 before missing the
previous two games with
a calf strain.
“A lot to be grateful for,
starting with the guys in
the locker room,” Smith
said. “Excited for them.
We had some bumps ear-
ly, kept fighting and here
we are.”
Smith tossed a 5-yard
pass to Terry McLaurin
to give Washington a 7-0
lead in the first quarter.
After Kamren Curl in-
tercepted Hurts’ pass,
Dustin Hopkins kicked a
42-yard field goal to make
it 10-0.
Smith finished 22 of
32 for 162 yards and two
picks with the two TDs.
“We feed off their en-
ergy,” Smith said about a
ferocious defense led by
rookie Chase Young.
an offense,” Brady said. “ I
love playing with the guys
I play with. We’ve got a
great group of receivers, a
great group of tight ends,
very selfless. The backs
have done an incredible
job, and the offensive line
has been playing great.”
Matt Ryan completed
29 of 44 passes for 265
yards and two touchdowns
for the Falcons (4-12), who
finished a distressing
season that claimed the
jobs of former coach Dan
Quinn and general manag-
er Thomas Dimitroff after
an 0-5 start.
Ryan scored on a 1-yard
sneak and also threw scor-
ing passes of 19 yards to
Russell Gage and 1 yard to
Hayden Hurst. The latter
trimmed Atlanta’s deficit
to 30-27 before Brady put
the game away with two
late drives.
Interim coach Raheem
Morris took over Oct. 12
and went 4-7. He inter-
viewed for the full-time
position last Friday and
would like to return.
“I love this football
team. I love this city. I
love this organization,
and I love the owner, and
I love the players,” Mor-
ris said. “These guys are
not far away. They’ve got
a chance. ... They’re that
close. We’ve got to find a
way to get over the edge.”
Some players are pull-
ing for him to return.
“He’s a great coach,”
running back Brian Hill
said. “Obviously he had
nothing to do with per-
ly and Browns players
danced off the sideline
and onto the field.
“This is what we imag-
ined,” said defensive star
Myles Garrett, who didn’t
win a game during his
2017 rookie season.
The Browns and their
passionate fan base en-
dured 197 losses, 14 dou-
ble-digit-loss seasons and
seven coaches since the
last playoff appearance.
Stefanski’s team bare-
ly practiced this week
because of COVID-19
positive tests and pro-
tocols and went into its
most important game in
years without six players,
including top cornerback
Denzel Ward, and three
assistant coaches.
The Browns were
clinging to a 10-9 lead in
the third quarter when
Rudolph, under extreme
pressure, floated a pass
across the field that was
intercepted by reserve
cornerback M.J. Stewart.
Cleveland capitalized
with wide receive Jarvis
Landry taking an inside
handoff and scoring on
a 3-yard run to put the
Browns up 24-9. Landry,
forced to sit out the first
game of his career as a
Down 17-14, the Eagles
had an excellent opportu-
nity at Washington’s 15
after Marcus Epps picked
Smith’s pass that bounced
out of J.D. McKissic’s
hands. The Eagles had a
first down from the 5 but
gained only 1 yard. Ped-
erson passed up a short
field goal and starter Ja-
len Hurts threw incom-
plete on fourth down from
the 4.
Hurts finished 7 of 20
for 72 yards, one intercep-
tion, 34 yards rushing and
two scores on the ground.
Sudfeld, who was in-
active for the previous
14 games, saw his first
action this season. After
T.J. Edwards intercept-
ed Smith, Sudfeld gave it
back with a fumble recov-
ered by Young. That led
to Hopkins’ 42-yarder and
a 20-14 lead for Washing-
ton.
Washington opened
the season with a 27-17
victory over the Eagles.
Dwayne Haskins started
sonnel this year. He just
worked with what we had
and he did a great job.”
Dynamic duo
With Evans out, Brady
still had plenty of playmak-
ers to work with.
Brown had his most
productive day since
joining the Bucs midway
through the season with
11 catches for 138 yards.
Godwin had five recep-
tions for 133 yards, while
Evans had three catches
for 46 yards before exiting.
Injuries
Falcons: Wide receiver
Julio Jones (hamstring)
missed his fourth con-
secutive game, finishing
the season with 51 recep-
tions for 771 yards and
three touchdowns in nine
games. ... Defensive tackle
Grady Jarrett (groin) left
in the first half and did not
return.
Buccaneers: Corner-
back Carlton Davis sat
out for the second straight
week with a groin injury.
... RB LeSean McCoy was
inactive. He didn’t practice
late in the week, however,
the team said it was not
injury related.
Up next
Falcons: will have a
busy offseason, begin-
ning by hiring a general
manager and coach. Mor-
ris thought his interview
with owner Arthur Blank
went well, adding: “Now
we’ll play the waiting game
COVID-19 close contact
last week, celebrated his
score by rifling the ball
against the padded end
zone wall.
For the moment he
got to Cleveland in 2018,
Landry’s goal was to get
the Browns back to the
postseason.
“I’m just excited to
play football this time of
year,” he said. “I don’t
care who we play.”
Garrett-Rudolph
Garrett and Rudolph
barely crossed paths —
until after the game.
It was their first meet-
ing in Cleveland since
Garrett tore off Rudolph’s
helmet and hit him with
it, one of the ugliest on-
field incidents in recent
NFL history that led to a
suspension for Garrett.
“I just told him, ‘Good
game, and see you all in a
week,’” Garrett said.
“I told him good luck,”
Rudolph said. “A lot of re-
spect for him.”
Nick of time
Chubb went over
1,000 yards for the sec-
ond straight season in
style. His 47-yard TD run
that game for Washing-
ton and Carson Wentz
for Philadelphia. Haskins
was released last week.
Wentz was benched last
month and was inactive
for this one.
Draft stock
The loss gave the Ea-
gles the sixth pick in the
NFL draft. It’ll be Phil-
adelphia’s fifth top-10
pick since 1999. The oth-
ers were: QB Donovan
McNabb (No. 2, 1999),
DT Corey Simon (No. 6,
2000), RT Lane Johnson
(No. 4, 2013), Wentz (No.
2, 2016).
Rivera’s impact
Rivera helped change
the losing culture in
Washington after nine
seasons as Carolina’s
coach. He did it while
battling squamous cell
carcinoma. Rivera missed
some practice time but no
games and completed his
treatment in October.
and see how it goes.”
Buccaneers: make their
first playoff appearance in
13 years. They haven’t won
a postseason game since
their Super Bowl champi-
onship run to end the 2002
season.
Murray returns from
ankle injury, can’t rally
Cardinals
INGLEWOOD, Calif.
— Kyler Murray’s injured
right ankle was the least of
his concerns after the Ari-
zona Cardinals’ postseason
hopes were dashed with an
18-7 loss to the Los Ange-
les Rams on Sunday.
Murray’s disappoint-
ment at not being able to
get a late-season win stung
more.
“Right now it doesn’t
matter how it feels. I don’t
have anything to look for-
ward to as far as moving
around on it. I’ll be fine,”
Murray said about the an-
kle after the game.
Murray’s status going
into Sunday was in doubt
earlier in the week after he
suffered a right leg injury
in last week’s loss to San
Francisco. He was a full
participant during prac-
tice leading up to the game
though.
But on a third-and-12
from the Rams 49 on the
first series, Los Angeles
defensive end Morgan Fox
landed on Murray’s ankle
while being sacked. Mur-
ray limped off the field and
went into the medical tent
before going into the lock-
pushed the Pro Bowler
into quadruple digits de-
spite him missing four
games with a sprained
right knee.
Injuries
Steelers: None report-
ed.
Browns: DE Olivier
Vernon suffered an ankle
injury in the fourth quar-
ter. Vernon didn’t put any
weight on his leg while
being assisted to the med-
ical tent. He was carted
to the locker room. ...
Rookie WR/PR Donovan
Peoples-Jones suffered
a concussion late in the
first half while jumping to
make a catch and getting
drilled by safety Sean Da-
vis.
Up next
Browns: Back to Pitts-
burgh, where they lost
38-7 in October and have
dropped 17 in a row at
Heinz Field. Cleveland’s
previous playoff game
was also in Pittsburgh, a
heartbreaking 36-33 loss
in ‘02.
Steelers: Will be back
at full strength for their
first playoff appearance
since the 2017 season.
Trainer’s room
Eagles: WR Jalen Rea-
gor left in the first half
with a head injury. ...
Several starters sat out
with injuries, including
DT Fletcher Cox, DE
Derek Barnett, TE Dal-
las Goedert, WR DeSean
Jackson, T Jordan Maila-
ta, RB Miles Sanders. S
Jalen Mills and CB Nick-
ell Robey-Coleman were
on COVID-19 list.
Up next
Washington: enters
the playoffs for the first
time since 2015.
Eagles: They face dif-
ficult decisions in the
offseason, including fig-
uring out which quarter-
back they plan to build
around for 2021. They’ll
also need to hire a new de-
fensive coordinator to re-
place Jim Schwartz, who
plans to take a season off.
er room.
By the time he came
back into the game early
in the fourth quarter, the
Cardinals were trailing
18-7. Murray completed
his first five passes when
he returned — including
throws of 26 yards to Trent
Sherfield and Dan Arnold
for 25 yards — to get them
into the red zone.
Arizona got as far as the
Rams 7 but Murray had a
4-yard loss on a read op-
tion and then was sacked
for a loss of 8 before Mike
Nugent’s 37-yard field-goal
attempt was blocked.
Coach Kliff Kingsbury
said it Murray’s call on go-
ing back into the game.
“He needed to loosen
it up. He couldn’t push off
on it,” he said. “He felt like
(the pain) was bearable
when he came back in. I’m
proud of him. It was gutty,
especially a guy who uses
his legs like that.”
Murray, who completed
8 of 11 passes for 87 yards,
added it was more of a
matter of loosening up the
ankle and making sure the
pain-killing injections had
done their job before he
was able to feel fine.
Chris Streveler came
on and led the Cardinals
to a touchdown on his first
drive, but was ineffective
after that. Streveler, who
had never thrown a pass
in an NFL game, had a
short field after Jordan
Hicks intercepted John
Wolford’s pass at the
Rams 20 and returned it
6 yards.

Packers
Continued from Page 1B
a row and beat Chicago
(8-8) for the 19th time in
22 games, counting the
postseason.
“This is a special sea-
son,” Rodgers said. “It
will always be a special
season for me. It’s been
a special year as well.
... It’s such a difficult
time for so many people.
I have such an under-
standing and apprecia-
tion for how difficult it’s
been on so many people.
I’ve really just tried to
have a good perspective,
an attitude of gratitude
and really just enjoy ev-
ery moment of this sea-
son.”
The Bears are head-
ed to the playoffs for the
second time in coach
Matt Nagy’s three years
despite the loss because
Arizona fell to the Los
Angeles Rams. Chicago
will be at New Orleans
(12-4) at Sunday at 4:40
p.m. EST.
“I don’t care how we
got there,” safety Eddie
Titans
Continued from Page 1B
league. They didn’t.
They battled back.”
The Titans (11-5)
needed the air game to
set up Sloman’s winner,
though: a 52-yard re-
ception by A.J. Brown
moments after a 51-yard
field goal by Houston
tied it with 18 seconds
left.
“In the end, we had
some time and we
executed and Ryan
(Tannehill) and A.J.
hooked up,” Vrabel said.
“There’s a lot to fix and
correct. We’re not going
to apologize for winning
11 games in the Nation-
al Football League.”
Tennessee will host
Baltimore (11-5) on Sun-
day at 1:05 p.m. EST.
“It’s a legacy accom-
plishment,” safety Kev-
in Byard said. “Obvi-
ously very disappointed
at how we finished the
game defensively ... But
at the end of the day, I’m
not going to sit here and
... not celebrate winning
Saints
Continued from Page 1B
... He says we’re not go-
ing to go into panic mode
— and that is a credit for
him,” said Sanders, who
had 63 yards receiving
and a touchdown.
Payton acknowledged
there were a lot “moving
parts” this week after
coaches learned about
the COVID-19 tests late
in the week.
“It’s happened to oth-
er teams,” Payton said.
“I was real proud of how
some guys stepped up.”
Carolina’s Ted-
dy Bridgewater was
benched midway
through the third quar-
ter after throwing his
second interception in
the end zone into double
coverage. The former
Saints QB finished 13 of
23 for 176 yards and was
replaced by P.J. Walker,
who was intercepted
three times.
Panthers coach Matt
Rhule said he took
Bridgewater out be-
cause he felt he was
lacking velocity on his
throws and wasn’t push-
ing off his ankle, which
he injured earlier in the
game.
“I didn’t think he
looked real healthy to
me,” Rhule said.
The Panthers (5 -11)
were also without their
top two running backs
Christian McCaffrey
and Mike Davis due to
injury and managed just
74 yards rushing.
Now that the Saints
are in the postseason,
veteran safety Malcolm
Jenkins said players
need to be extra care-
ful to avoid coming into
Jackson said. “We’re in.
That’s the marvel of it.”
Rodgers joined Pey-
ton Manning (2004 and
2013) as the only play-
ers to throw for at least
45 touchdowns in mul-
tiple seasons. He now
has 48, surpassing his
previous high of 45 in
his first MVP season of
2011, and just five inter-
ceptions.
Rodgers completed
19 of 24 passes for 240
yards without getting
picked off and had a
147.9 rating. He also im-
proved to 21-5 against
Chicago, counting the
postseason.
“The MVP should be
locked up,” Davante Ad-
ams said. “There’s noth-
ing else to really talk
about. You look at what
we’ve done and what
he’s been able to do, and
they’ve hit him with ev-
erything. Said he didn’t
have any weapons, and
we go out there and go
13-3 regular season.”
the division.”
Henry finished the
regular season with a
franchise-record 2,027
yards rushing to be-
come the eighth play-
er in NFL history to
run for 2,000 yards. He
passed Chris Johnson,
who had 2,006 yards in
2009.
Henry had touch-
down runs of 52 and
6 yards in his third
straight 200 -yard rush-
ing game against the
Texans.
“I got it. I did it,” he
said of joining the elite
2,000 -yard rushing
club. “But I ... wasn’t
pressing for it, just
wanted to be able to win
the game as a team and
make to the playoffs,
win the division.”
Henry entered the
game having already
secured his second
straight rushing ti-
tle, making him the
first player to lead the
league in rushing in
contact with COVID-19.
“That will come with
some sacrifices and
being smart and isolat-
ing ourselves,” Jenkins
said. “... We are trying
our best to limit our ex-
posure because we have
what we want right in
front of us.”
In the past, the Saints
would have earned a
first-round bye, but the
NFL’s decision to add
an extra playoff team
in each conference this
year means New Orle-
ans will need an extra
win to reach the Super
Bowl.
“We wanted to end
the season continuing
to ascend,” Brees said.
Bridgewater’s season
Bridgewater fin-
ished the season with
15 touchdowns and 11
interceptions and went
4-11 as the team’s start-
er. He also ran for five
TDs, but the Panthers
struggled to make win-
ning plays late in games
all season with Bridge-
water at the helm.
That leaves questions
about his future as the
Panthers starting QB,
especially with the team
having a top 10 draft
pick in 2021.
“In this business, ev-
erything is production
based and my produc-
tion has to be better,”
Bridgewater said. “It’s
all about executing the
game plan. We want to
be better in the red zone
as a team and I want to
be better. I need to do
more.”
The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com
Adams is doing his Lambeau Field to start
part, too. their win streak.
He broke Sterling The Bears are the
Sharpe’s team record third team since the
for receptions in a sea- 1970 merger to reach the
son and tied his mark playoffs after losing six
for touchdown catches in a row. The Monsters
in a year on Sunday. Ad- of the Midway bounced
ams had six receptions back by winning three
to bump his total to 115 straight against strug-
and surpass Sharpe’s gling teams. But against
mark of 112 in 1993. His Green Bay, the result
6 -yard score late in the was a familiar one.
game gave him 18 TD’s, Mitchell Trubisky
matching Sharpe’s team went 33 for 42 with 252
record in 1994. yards and an intercep-
Marquez Val- tion.
des-Scantling became Rookie Darnell
the first Packer since Mooney set career highs
Jordy Nelson in 2014 with 11 catches and 93
with two touchdown yards before leaving
catches of 70 or more early in the fourth peri-
yards in a season. He od with an ankle injury.
caught a 72-yarder in He was hurt when he
the second quarter, was tackled going out of
though he also dropped bounds after a catch.
a potential 63-yard TD David Montgomery
early in the third. ran for 69 yards and a
Aaron Jones ran for a touchdown and caught
score in the closing min- nine passes for 63 yards.
utes. And the Packers Cairo Santos made all
beat Chicago again after three field goals, ex-
pounding the Bears at tending his streak to
consecutive seasons yards with a 6 -yard run
since Hall of Famer La- early in that drive.
Daianian Tomlinson in Tannehill threw for
2006 -07. Second-place 216 yards and a touch-
rusher Dalvin Cook of down and ran for two
Minnesota entered the more scores. Watson
week with 1,557 yards threw for 365 yards and
rushing and missed three touchdowns with
Sunday’s game after the an interception as the
death of his father. Texans (4-12) dropped
Henry, the 2015 their fifth in a row.
Heisman Trophy win- Watson’s big day
ner, ran for 1,540 yards gave him a career-best
last season. 4,823 yards passing this
Tennessee had a season to move him past
three-point lead early Kansas City’s Patrick
in the fourth quarter Mahomes (4,740), who
when Tannehill was didn’t play Sunday, for
sacked on fourth-and-11 first in the NFL.
to give the Texans the Henry’s 6 -yard run
ball at their 37. Houston extended the lead to
took its first lead when 24-9 early in the third
Deshaun Watson found quarter. But Watson
Pharaoh Brown on a connected with Brandin
7-yard pass that made it Cooks on a 38 -yard TD
35 -31 with about 10 min- pass to cut the lead to
utes remaining. 24-15 after a missed ex-
The Titans then tra point.
capped a long drive Tannehill’s 5 -yard
with a 5 -yard TD run by scramble made it 31-15
Tannehill with less than later in the third. Henry
two minutes remaining. had a 45 -yard run two
Henry reached 2,000 plays earlier to set up
MONDAY, JANUARY 4, 2021 3B
a franchise-record 27. ken up. Green Bay then
The Bears also lost line- drove 76 yards, with
backer Roquan Smith to Jones scoring from the
an elbow injury. 4 to make it 28-16 with
But they’ll play at 3:47 remaining.
least one more game. Adrian Amos then
“The season didn’t intercepted Trubisky at
go the way we envision midfield and returned it
it, but we have another to the Chicago 26, lead-
opportunity,” Trubisky ing to a 6 -yard touch-
said. “It’s got to be our down catch for Adams.
best week. It’s got to be
my best week.”
Injuries
Packers: nothing re-
Recap ported.
The Packers lost Bears: Smith was
standout left tackle Da- hurt defending a run
vid Bakhtiari to a sea- late in the first quarter
son-ending knee injury and headed to the lock-
on Thursday. Even so,
er room.
they scored on all three
possessions in the first
half. And they added Up next
two touchdowns in the Packers: The Packers
fourth quarter to break have their sights set on
open a five-point game. a deep playoff run after
The Packers were losing to San Francisco
leading 21-16 when the in the conference cham-
Bears opted to go on pionship game last sea-
fourth-and-1 at the 25 son. They are off next
rather than kick a field weekend.
goal. Trubisky’s pass to Bears: visit New Orle-
Allen Robinson got bro- ans on Sunday.
the score. this offseason.
Cooks grabbed a 20 - The three-time NFL
yard TD reception on Defensive Player of the
Houston’s next drive, Year reflected on the
but the 2-point con- possibility that Sunday
version failed, leaving could be his last time
Houston down 31-21. playing in front of the
Henry fumbled on Ten- fans he’s loved for a de-
nessee’s next drive at its cade.
28. Watson’s 1-yard TD “I’ve certainly consid-
pass to David Johnson ered it but... there’s too
cut the lead to 31-28 late many unknowns to real-
in the third. ly know,” he said. “But
if it is, it’s unfortunate
Injuries that it wasn’t in front of
Titans: G Roger Saf- a full stadium ... but I
hope they know how I
fold left in the third
feel about them and how
quarter with an ankle
thankful I am and I’ve
injury and didn’t return.
Texans: LT Laremy tried to do everything
Tunsil sat out on Sunday I possibly can and give
with an ankle injury. everything I possibly
have.”
Watt’s future
Houston defensive Up next
end J.J. Watt is under Titans: host Balti-
contract for one more more on Sunday in the
season, but has said he wild-card round.
doesn’t want to be part Texans: begin an off-
of a rebuilding team, season when they must
leading to speculation hire a coach and general
that he could be traded manager.
4B MONDAY, JANUARY 4, 2021
NFL playoff schedule with TV information
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
This is an NFL playoff
field for a new generation.
In addition to having
two extra teams in the
postseason, one of the
games will air on a chil-
dren’s cable network.
The Chiefs, 14-2, have
the top seed in the AFC
playoff bracket and will
be the only team in their
conference to hold a bye
and get the weekend off
when the postseason be-
gins Saturday. The Chiefs
defeated four of the teams
that qualified for the play-
offs: the Bills, Ravens,
Saints and Buccaneers.
The AFC bracket fell
into place when the Titans
defeated the Texans 41-38
on a final-snap field goal
Comics & Puzzles
DILBERT
ZITS
GARFIELD
CANDORVILLE
BABY BLUES
BEETLE BAILEY
MALLARD FILLMORE
by Samuel Sloman. The
kick from 37 yards hit the
upright before bouncing
through.
So the matchups are
set. The second-seeded
Bills will play host to the
seventh-seeded Colts.
The Titans are the No. 4
seed and will play host to
the fifth-seeded Ravens.
The third-seeded Steel-
ers take on the No. 6 seed
Browns.
And the children’s net-
work? One of the games
will be televised by Nick-
elodeon, among other
channels.
The Browns-Steelers
game will be a rematch of
Sunday’s 24-22 Cleveland
victory over Pittsburgh.
That outcome ended the
NFL’s longest playoff
FAMILY CIRCUS
The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com
drought.
Cleveland’s previous
two playoff appearances,
in 2002 and 1994, ended
with first-game losses
to ... you guessed it, the
Steelers.
The Bills blew out the
Dolphins 56-26 to lock up
the No. 2 seed. Buffalo
improved to 13-3, match-
ing the best record in
franchise history. That
and other outcomes elim-
inated the Dolphins from
the playoffs.
In the NFC, the Rams
clinched the sixth seed
by beating Arizona, while
the Chicago Bears backed
in despite losing at home
to the Green Bay Packers.
The only spot left to be
claimed was in the NFC
postseason field. Wash-
ington won the NFC East
division with a victory
over Philadelphia.
Here are the playoff
seeds:
AFC seeds: 1. Chiefs,
2. Bills, 3. Steelers, 4.
Titans, 5. Ravens, 6.
Browns, 7. Colts
NFC seeds: 1. Packers,
2. Saints, 3. Seahawks,
4. Washington 5. Bucca-
neers, 6. Rams, 7. Bears
Here is the NFL playoff
schedule (all times Cen-
tral):
Wild Card games
Saturday, Jan. 9
AFC: (7) Indianapolis
Colts (11-5) at (2) Buffalo
Bills (13-3), 12:05 p.m. on
CBS (Ch. 5)
NFC: (6) Los Angeles
Rams (10-6) at (3) Seat-
Dear Abby
D
EAR ABBY:
My father
passed
away a few
months ago.
My brother lives
out of state, so
emptying the
house has been
up to me. Shortly
after the funeral,
my adult son (the
only grandchild)
arrived and
loaded his car
with all the toilet
paper, paper Dear Abby
towels, light
bulbs, cleaning
products, etc. He did it
without asking, so I promptly
had the locks changed. When
I asked him about it, he said,
“Grandpa doesn’t need the
stuff anymore.”
After months of packing
(by myself), we are now down
to the furniture, and my son
wants everything. He feels
he’s entitled to it. Rather than
select one or two pieces, he
is “gimme, gimme, gimme”
and sees nothing wrong with
this attitude. I didn’t raise
him that way, but he is that
way now. What should I do?
— GREEDY OUT WEST
DEAR GREEDY: Although
at this point it’s a little late,
Horoscopes
TODAY’S BIRTHDAY (Jan.
4). From where you currently
sit on this whimsical path,
you couldn’t possibly guess
the wonders ahead. Money-
making opportunities come in
new forms. February and June
sparkle with social excitement
and new relationships. Summer
swirls around a singular goal
and the dream team to make it
happen. Virgo and Libra adore
you. Your lucky numbers are:
33, 12, 4, 18 and 39.
ARIES (March 21-April 19).
Everywhere you go people are
asking for feedback - robots,
too. Corporations, social media
posts, people around you, it’s
like your opinion is a precious
commodity. Yes, and your atten-
tion and time are even more so.
tle Seahawks (12-4), 3:40
p.m. on Fox (Ch. 4)
NFC: (5) Tampa Bay
Buccaneers (11-5) at (4)
Washington, 7:15 p.m. on
NBC (Ch. 41)
Sunday, Jan. 10
AFC: (5) Baltimore Ra-
vens (11-5) at (4) Tennes-
see Titans (11-5), 12:05
p.m. on ESPN and ABC
(Ch. 9)
NFC: (7) Chicago
Bears (8-8) at (2) New
Orleans Saints (12-4),
3:40 p.m. on CBS (Ch. 5),
Nickelodeon and Amazon
Prime
AFC: (6) Cleveland
Browns (11-5) at (3) Pitts-
burgh Steelers (12-4),
7:15 p.m. on NBC (Ch. 41)
Divisional round
what you should
do is finally say
NO. Unless your
father stated
specifically — in
writing — that
your son should
get everything,
what he did
is considered
stealing.
DEAR ABBY:
What the heck
happens to men
between the
ages of 45 and
60? It seems
the women
they’re after are
all 15 to 20 years younger. I
don’t mean just for sex but
for dating, love and marriage,
too.
We middle-aged women
are often overlooked because
these middle-aged guys don’t
realize we are at our sexual
peak and often hot as hell.
And we’re active in many
interesting, fulfilling activities.
By the time these men come
to their senses, they are usu-
ally washed-up and impotent.
Why is nature and society so
cruel and unfair? How can I,
as a sexy, active middle-aged
woman, beat the odds? I do
not intend to remain celibate
and alone for the rest of my
TAURUS (April 20-May
20). Everything adds to your
momentum, even the things
that seem to thwart it. Whatever
comes up, you’ll handle it like
a boss, take the necessary
recovery time, and then get into
the action of accelerating your
intentions.
GEMINI (May 21-June 21).
The risk worth taking won’t
involve the lottery or any other
kind of game. The gamble to
double down on is an invest-
ment in you — your education,
your dreams or even your
whims.
CANCER (June 22-July 22).
Look for the answer to the trick.
The flash pot is redirecting your
attention, so what is it they
don’t want you to look at? What
Saturday, Jan. 16
NFC: Teams, time and
TV, TBD
AFC: Teams, time and
TV, TBD
Sunday, Jan. 17
AFC: Teams, time and
TV, TBD
NFC: Teams, time and
TV, TBD
Championship
games
NFC: Sunday, Jan. 20,
at 2:05 p.m. on Fox (Ch. 4)
AFC: Sunday, Jan. 20,
at 5:40 p.m. on CBS (Ch.
5)
Super Bowl LV
Sunday, Feb. 7, at 5:30
p.m. on CBS (Ch. 5)
AFC champion vs.
NFC champion, in Tam-
pa, Fla.
life. — STILL FUN IN THE
SOUTH
DEAR STILL FUN: You
can’t change other people,
but you can change the way
you react to them. A way to
“beat the odds” would be to
stop focusing solely on mid-
dle-aged guys and consider
dating men a bit younger who
appreciate what you have to
offer. Even if it doesn’t lead to
marriage, you could have a lot
of fun in the meantime.
DEAR ABBY: We have a
friend who often comes to us
for advice, but never seems
to take it. She keeps making
the same mistake over and
over again. How do we get
through to her? — FRIENDS
WHO CARE IN UTAH
DEAR FRIENDS: Candidly?
Realize you can’t get through
to her because she’s not
really seeking advice. Rather
than listening, she’s venting.
Because of the friendship,
listen when she “dumps,” but
refrain from offering wisdom
you know will be disregarded.
Dear Abby is written
by Abigail Van Buren, also
known as Jeanne Phillips, and
was founded by her mother,
Pauline Phillips. Contact Dear
Abby at www.DearAbby.com or
P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles,
CA 90069.
matters is the intention behind
the magic. Can you see that,
too?
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). Your
goal is to create a pleasant
social flow and an environment
of comfort and familiarity. You
deliver better work from that
sort of atmosphere and so will
the others.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22).
When what you do serves a pur-
pose, that’s a viable contribu-
tion. When what you do changes
someone, that’s an art. You’re
happy with the former, though
you’ll strive for the latter until
it’s done.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23).
You’re adhering to a pattern set
long ago because it’s what has
always been expected. But this
sequence isn’t as fulfilling as
you want it to be. You’ll dare to
set different expectations, and
the others’ will change soon
after.
SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21).
You’ve a charming way of letting
the other person know that
you’re engaged in their sharing.
For this reason, people will seek
your company. They want your
reaction and will ask for it time
and again.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec.
21). Don’t let the jittery rhythm
of the day stop you from forward
movement. You’ll find yourself
doing a highly original dance —
a dance you couldn’t have found
without this unusual beat.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan.
19). You’ll adjust your think-
ing in regard to a hobby. It’s
becoming more like work. You
approach it like a professional.
Whether you’re getting paid
for it is beside the point. Your
attitude changes your game.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb.
18). Your attraction to someone
is based in an attraction to the
“you” that emerges when you’re
around this person. Seize this
shiny opportunity to play a dif-
ferent role, one that’s focused
on your common interests.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March
20). You embrace the pro-
cess of creation in service to
improvement. Creativity thrives
in the same sort of environment
that nurtures children -- accep-
tance, support and a set of
lovingly, consistently enforced
rules.
Bear in mind
SOLUTION:
The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com MONDAY, JANUARY 4, 2021 5B
Classifieds
Ads appear in The Commercial Dispatch,
The Starkville Dispatch and Online
To place ads starting at only $12,
call 662-328-2424 or visit ads.cdispatch.com
THE DISPATCH n CDISPATCH.COM n MONDAY, JANUARY 4, 2021 n 6B

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Read local. ber-placing
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the Classifieds.
662−312−6617. The object
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2021 Conceptis Puzzles, Dist. by King Features Syndicate, Inc.

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is to place a 9x9
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ED SANDERS GUNSMITH object
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Real Estate
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LEASE, outline of events
© The Dispatch

26 Painter
DEPOSIT Holbein 2 Track race 24 Banished

Service Directory
AND 27 Wager 3 Biscotti flavor 25 Brewed
CREDIT CHECK 28 Metal source 4 Cheap criti- drinks
29 “Darn!” cisms 27 Mixes
662-329-2323 33 Crayon 5 Component
6 Stood up
29 Wide
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makeup
2411 HWY 45 N Promote your small business starting at only $25 34 Breathe 7 Photographer 31 Some golf
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General Services General Services General Services Lawn Care / Landscaping
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Buy. Sell. Discover. In the Classifieds section.

On the web: ads.cdispatch.com • Or call: 662-328-2424